(upbeat music) - Look at those.

Wonder what's cooking in "Jul's Armenian Kitchen" this week?

Well, like so many of our shows this season, there's a lot more than recipes to share.

Hi, I'm Julianne, but you can call me Jul.

And this is "Jul's Armenian Kitchen."

The recipes of my childhood are beginning to fade with time, so I'm on a mission to learn the secrets and stories behind great Armenian home cooking, the way it's always been passed down in family kitchens right here in the Central Valley.

I'll learn how these proud Armenian families built their version of the American dream in ways you won't find written down anywhere else.

And I'll be stepping right into their kitchens to see how it's really done.

There'll be great food and a few unexpected moments along the way.

We're gonna have a delicious time.

Production funding for "Jul's Armenian Kitchen" is provided by Fowler Packing Company, three generations of family farming in California's Central Valley, bringing Peelz citrus and Samsons grapes to families nationwide.

More information at fowlerpacking.com.

Ohanyans of Fresno.

For more than 40 years, Ohanyans has preserved Armenian culinary traditions through handcrafted products rooted in heritage, quality, and craftsmanship.

What began in the Central Valley is now shared nationwide.

For more information, visit ohanyans.com.

(fountain water trickling) (gentle upbeat music) Like any family kitchen, the food is the gateway to the history, the culture, songs, gatherings of family and friends, and memories of those who came before us.

And today we're firing up all of the above.

(gentle upbeat music continues) I'm here in my dad's backyard, and we're headed straight to the grill.

Joining me today is Richard Hagopian, who's been a dear friend of my family for many decades.

Today we're making Richard Hagopian's peda burgers, the very same burgers he served for 30 years at his former deli in Visalia, California.

But Richard's story goes far beyond the fantastic grilling skills.

He's best known around the world as an award-winning master oud player and the leader of Kef Time, a band that became a major part of Armenian American music, whose musical legacy has continued through his children and grandchildren that have carried the tradition forward.

The Hagopian's have been close family friends since well before my dad was even born, and that history is part of what makes today so very meaningful.

He's not only a musical and cultural icon, he is, in every way for us, chosen family.

All right, so they've arrived.

Richard, thank you for coming.

- You're welcome.

- You're gonna show us how to make your peda burgers?

- [Richard] Oh yeah.

- [Jul] All right, let's go.

Also joining us today is Richard's lovely wife, Geri, the woman behind the magic at Hagopian's International Deli.

- Okay, you wanna get a good mixture.

- Okay.

- So you don't wanna put everything together at one time.

- Oh.

- You wanna take a little bit of the lamb, little bit of the beef, mix them up.

- And I've learned the word for this in Armenian.

- Okay.

- Shaghel?

- Shah-chel.

- Shah-ghel - Yes.

- See, I'm working on my Armenian.

I have to say, this far into the season, my Armenian vocabulary has come a long way.

So did you make it the night before at your deli?

- Yes.

But being in the deli business, you know, we used to make like 50 pounds at a time.

- Oh my God.

(both chuckling) And you had lots of things on your menu though, not just peda burgers.

For over 30 years, Richard and his wife Geri ran Hagopian's International Delicatessen in Visalia.

Their menu included everything from shish kebab and lahmejun to Richard's peda burgers, which he's showing me how to make today.

And even after the restaurant closed, Richard kept sharing one of his most coveted dishes, donating his time to grill his famous lamb kebabs for the church.

So, today I feel honored.

Now let's get back to those burgers.

- We're gonna add a little bit of cumin, not too much.

- Okay.

(gentle upbeat music) - Little bit of salt.

- Did you enjoy being in the food business?

- Oh, yeah.

(bottle taps) I enjoyed... Well, they keep me in the back because I wasn't very good with the customers.

- [Jul] Oh, really?

(chuckling) - She'd keep me in the back because I don't have much patience.

(Jul laughing) We add a little, not much, little bit of tomato sauce.

- Oh, that's really not much at all.

Maybe like- - Well, we'll see.

We might- - Oh, okay.

- And then the egg that's beaten.

(utensil clinking) - Thank you.

- Now, we're gonna nix this real good and eat it.

Or like you said, "Shah-ghel it.

(Jul chuckling) - This is the one main word I've been learning since we did "Jul's Armenian Kitchen," because everyone ends up doing this at some point in their meal.

(gentle upbeat music) One of the joys for me this season has been how much I've learned just by being next to my guests in the kitchen.

So much of our food is passed down by feel.

In those small moments when someone shows you with their hands, this is how recipes transcend generations.

And for Richard, this part matters.

- Oh, it's important.

- Mm-hmm.

(mixture squelching) - I knead it real good.

- Okay.

- So how did you farm and do the cooking business and make music, like did you, and raise children?

(both chuckling) - Well, I had a person taking care of my farm.

- [Jul] Oh, okay.

- [Richard] And I would only oversee it.

And then music, of course, was on the weekend, and mostly at night.

- [Jul] Oh, I see.

- [Richard] But if I got called to the east or out of the country, Geri would take over and run the whole business.

- [Jul] Wow!

- [Richard] She was the main person anyway.

And then we had help from her mother and my mother.

- So it all worked out?

- Oh, yeah.

- What was your mother's name?

I should know this, but... - Anjel or Angel.

- [Jul] Anjel.

And your dad?

- [Richard] Hoserov.

- [Jul] Hoserov.

- [Richard] And her mother's name was Rose, which was Vartanush.

- [Jul] As Richard shared about our family ties between his grandmother, Rose, and my dad's grandmother, Rebecca, who they all lovingly called Auntie Pecca, I learned what a special relationship they had.

Both strong women who loved their families fiercely.

- They were very close.

They were almost like sisters.

- Wow.

I bet they hung out a lot and cooked, and maybe they did what we're doing right now.

- Well, yeah, Grandma Pecca was an excellent cook.

- Pecca is my grandma?

- Rebecca.

- Pecca, they called her.

- Yes, Marashian.

- They called her- - They called her Pecca.

We called her Auntie Pecca.

- I've always shared a special connection with my great-grandmother, Rebecca.

I carry her name as my middle name, making me Julianne Rebecca.

And although I never got to meet her, she was known in our family as an incredible cook.

I believe there's something serendipitous about this.

And wrapping up the season, I felt closer to her too.

And she was a great cook?

- Oh, she made everything from scratch.

- [Jul] Like I heard that you said that she did really tight yalanchis.

- Little ones.

About that big.

Because she used to use them for hors d'oeuvre.

- Mm-hmm.

- So you wouldn't have to, you know, they make them huge now.

- Yeah, yeah.

- And they're hard and tasteless.

I don't know.

(Jul laughing) - So hers were really good?

- Oh, yeah.

- All right, let's mold these patties and get to the grill.

But first, let's recap.

To make your peda burgers, you'll get your one pound of ground lamb, one pound of ground beef, a dash of cumin, salt and pepper to taste, one ounce of canned tomato sauce, and one beaten egg.

Then you shaghel that mixture really good and portion it out depending on how big you want your patties.

But this recipe reasonably makes four to six patties.

Once well combined, roll the mixture into balls.

Then get a piece of parchment paper and put it on top of your mixture so as to not stick when you smash down those bad boys.

And then you'll have a smash burger.

(gentle cheerful music) Well, Richard and I are making a great team today.

Not everyone can say they got to be Richard Hogopian's sous chef.

Mm, it smells so good.

(paper rustles) Perfect.

That's it!

- That's it!

(gentle cheerful music continues) - Grilling in my dad's garden is such a tradition for our family.

I always like to walk around a little bit while dad grills 'cause there's so many creative touches to see in the yard that was landscaped by my dad and decorated by my mom, the yard sailing queen.

(gentle cheerful music continues) After all this prep, I'm ready to eat.

Time to grill up some burgers.

(meat sizzling) - [Off Camera Person] Ooh, you've got this!

- Oh, how I love the sound of a hot grill on a sunny afternoon.

(meat continues sizzling) (gentle cheerful music continues) Look at those.

Woo!

- [Richard] These are cooked.

(meat continues sizzling) - So you grew up hanging out with, as a child, with the whole clan, essentially.

- With the whole clan.

And I used to sneak to... We'd play with the kids, but I'd like to sneak to where the men were because they would... And I learned Turkish quick.

Before I went to school, I could speak English, Armenian, and Turkish, because my mother's side spoke Turkish, my father's side spoke Turkish and Armenian and Kurdish.

From where they came, they had to learn Kurdish.

- [Jul] Interesting.

- So when I'd come into the room and they're talking, they're telling things, and my great uncle, in Armenian, would say quietly, "There's a fly on the wall."

(Jul laughing) And they changed talking about what they- - Because he knew you understood.

(laughing) - That's what they'd say in Armenian, "There's a fly on the wall."

And I didn't know what they're talking, I'd look and see, "I don't see no..." (all laughing) - That's cute.

- Isn't that beautiful?

- Dad, how long do you think you and Richard have known each other?

- We grew up together.

We were always friends.

And they're just a family that is kind of like my family.

They were so close, and we saw them so very often.

And Richard's grandmother was very close with my grandmother.

It's a long time relationship.

- I love hearing my dad talk about his memories, his friendship with Richard and the family.

Just like these dishes we share, the stories and memories of their times together are legendary for us.

And although society operated a little differently then, the family ties were as strong and authentic then as they are today.

- [Richard] We were in a patriarchal family, the first generation.

- Right.

- It's not like now.

- I see.

- When people came, the women sat in one room.

The men would sit and play cards or converse in one room.

- Oh, really?

- And the kids never conversed with the elders unless the elders spoke to them.

- Oh, really?

- Not allowed to speak to the elders.

- Boy, we should have turned that one upside down, didn't we?

- You did, you did.

(Jul laughing) - Well, that's okay.

- [Jul] Yeah, my mother was the driving force in breaking those cultural norms, for sure.

Her parents were very progressive and challenged a lot of social norms at the time.

And my dad always admired my mom.

He admired her intelligence and her unflinching wit.

- We, I think both my wife and I, really wanted them to be who they were.

And each one is different, a little bit different, but yet they're always able to talk and conduct themselves, and it worked out nicely.

I think that it's just the times changed a little bit.

- Well said, Dad.

And I wouldn't want it any other way.

- [Richard] We're ready.

- [Jul] We're ready?

- We're ready.

- Oh boy.

- Let's chomp.

- We're gonna eat.

(chuckling) (Richard chuckling) Okay, cheers.

(glasses clinking) To family.

- Okay, thank you.

- To family.

- Mm, to chosen family.

Okay, let's do it.

I wish there was a smell of vision so you could smell these burgers with their classic blend of meats and spices elevated by that fresh pita roll and all the toppings.

It's no wonder they made 50 pounds per day at Richard and Geri's deli, because anything this mouthwatering must be bestselling too.

Once we finally sat down to eat, I didn't let Richard eat because I wanted to hear how Richard became the musician and cultural icon he is today.

- Armenian families always want their sons to play violin.

At a young age, really, at Armenian functions, I was like four or five years old, I used to dance, solo dance with my dad.

They used to throw money, you know, for the organization to make money.

So then I start playing the Armenian drum.

Then my father and them said, "You should start violin."

So I started violin.

You had company, you'd visit and eat, and then they'd play the phonograph.

And they'd either sing with it, or sometimes it was sad song, they'd cry with it.

They'd get up and dance with it.

And one day my dad was buying records, and one day he played a record and it was the oud.

It was a solo.

I listened and listened.

By that time, I was in grammar school and I was also playing clarinet.

I was playing violin in the school orchestra and clarinet in the marching band.

So then I start playing Armenian music on the clarinet and violin so that I'd be on programs.

They didn't hear little kid come and play, you know?

Well, I heard this record, the oud.

I told my dad, "I want that instrument."

(Jul chuckles) He says, "We don't have anybody in the old country.

How are we gonna get that in?

There are no instruments like that here."

- [Jul] But as fate would have it, a family friend who knew Richard's father heard how badly Richard wanted an oud.

- "Oh my God, he said, "I played the oud from the old country, and I have and I don't play it anymore."

He says, "I'll go get it and bring it over."

- Oh my goodness.

(hand thuds) - So, he comes and he brings that oud, shows me how to tune it.

Well, I'm playing violin so it's very close.

- Oh.

- So now he's coming once a week.

That evening, I plucked out a tune because I could play.

So I started playing like that until, that was around 1946 I started the oud.

And then 1950, I was listening to records, learning to... I used to play with the, put the records on, because no notation for oud.

- [Jul] Right.

- So I'd copy.

And there was one artist that sang real good and played qanun, and he was internationally known.

He had moved to LA, and they were gonna come to Fresno to play.

They were bringing him.

So we went to that doing, and they took a break, and he happened to be a good friend of my uncle's brother in LA.

So when he took a break, I went over there and I poked him.

(Jul chuckling) He looked at me, and he said, "What do you want?"

in Armenian.

I said, "I played the oud."

And I said, "I've copied all your music."

And I says, "I can play your songs."

(Jul laughing) He start laughing.

He said, "You do play the oud?"

He's speaking in Armenian.

I said, "Yes."

They got back on stage.

And he had an oud player, Charles Karibian from Fresno.

So they played a few songs, and then he got on the microphone, and he said "I met a little kid.

He said he played the oud."

He says, "Where is that kid?

I want him to come on stage."

So I start going up on stage, and I went there, and he tells the oud player, this older guy, he says, "Give your oud to the kid."

And that guy says, "What?

We're going to play with kids now?"

(Jul gasps) He's insulted.

- Yeah, naturally.

- So he gave it.

He gave the oud.

He says, "Okay, let's start playing it."

So we start playing it.

I played that song.

We played one more song.

Anyway, my father went and talked to him.

The next day, he's gonna go back to LA, they drive in our yard.

He tells my mother and dad, he says "Your boy is very talented.

He's playing right, but he needs lessons.

He needs to read music.

He needs to polish."

He says, "I want him as a student."

So I went in the summer, I stayed with my uncle, took lessons.

And then on the weekends, I used to, I would just 13, 14, I used to get on the train in Fresno and go all the way to LA.

- [Jul] And as Richard grew as a musician, he and his mentor, Kanuni Garbis, eventually went from teacher and student to playing professionally together.

Garbis helped shape Richard's early years and introduced him to even more of the Armenian musical world.

And later, Richard spoke about his other mentor that he would go on to learn from, Udi Hrant, one of the greatest Armenian oud players of the 20th century.

- [Richard] In 1950, the record that I heard that I said, "I want the oud"?

- [Jul] Right.

- That was an Armenian man named Udi Hrant, who was born blind and Armenian.

Very well known in Turkey to this day.

He came to Fresno to give a concert, and they allowed me to go.

There were no kids allowed, but they already knew because I was playing.

And my teacher also came to accompany him, and they brought out two beautiful ouds that he had brought with him from Turkey.

They took intermission.

I said, "I'm gonna go backstage."

So we went backstage.

I says, "Are those ouds for sale?"

He's playing it.

But there was another one too.

(Jul laughing) So we asked him, he said, "Which one you want?"

the player, Hrant.

I said, "I want the one you're playing."

- (laughing) Richard.

(upbeat music) Clearly, Richard had confidence from the very beginning, and he would live up to it.

He became one of America's most respected oud players, sharing Armenian music with audiences around the world.

In 1969, Udi Hrant gave Richard the title of Udi, recognizing him as a master of the instrument.

It was the highest honor an oud player could receive.

And coming from Udi Hrant, that was a big deal.

With the Kef Time band, Richard helped define the West Coast sound of Armenian folk and Kef music, bringing traditional Armenian and Anatolian dance music to audiences across the country.

Then in 1989, he received the National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts, the country's highest honor for folk and traditional artists.

So, Richard, would you play some music for us now?

- Yeah, I'll play music for you now.

- Okay.

Are you gonna dance with me?

(Jul laughing) - [Jul's Dad] What an honer to have you playing here.

- Yes, thank you.

(gentle music) I always tell the story, but when she was born, I came home from the hospital, and I picked up her two brothers.

They were they were staying with my grandmother for a little bit.

And I picked them up, and we came home.

That was the first night.

And I turned on your record and danced to that thing holding two kids, one in each arm.

I went around and around that house till I was exhausted.

(all laughing) It was a celebration to have a daughter.

And look at... Mmm.

(lips smack) Okay.

Yeah, that's it.

(hand patting) - My dad and I have been through so much in the past decade, caring for my mom through her illness and grieving her loss, that it was nice to spend some time remembering the good times.

It fills me with hope that as long as we love each other and stick together, there's always more good to come.

After everything Richard has done for Armenian music, there's no way we were leaving without hearing him play.

I requested a song that's always been a part of our mirage and family story, "Tin Tin."

(bright music) (bright music continues) Yay!

(clapping) (Jul's dad speaks faintly) Oh, that's so nice.

- You didn't dance.

- No, I didn't.

(all chuckling) I may have been too self-conscious to dance, but Richard has spent years making sure the next generation knows this music too.

He served on the music council for the Alliance for California Traditional Arts, and that work would eventually come full circle in his own family.

- When that was over, they start giving grants, and these kids were seven, eight years old.

And I won two grants to teach two of my grandkids the same instrument.

- Mm-hmm.

(gentle upbeat music) That was the same grant that I got to start Armenian cooking from an apprentice, in 2019, Alliance for California Traditional Arts.

- Mm-hmm.

- Yeah, it's wonderful.

It was a great program.

It was a fun surprise to learn that Richard and I had both been part of the same aprenticeship program just through different traditions.

The ACTA Apprenticeship was really the starting point for this show.

It forced me to carve out time each month to learn recipes from my awesome teacher, Zee Bedrosian, write them up and document my reflections along the way.

Looking back, those discipline yet creative tasks were really the building blocks for what would become "Jul's Armenian Kitchen."

(upbeat music) The music lives on through his family, through Richard using his opportunities to teach his sons and grandsons, who now perform with the Kef Time Legacy Band and carry on the music of their grandfather's original group.

His son Harold has also built his life around music.

After studying violin at Julliard, he founded Traditional Crossroads, a music label that has helped bring Middle Eastern music to audiences around the world.

Richard, thank you.

- You're welcome.

- Thank you.

- You're very welcome.

- [Jul] Before we said goodbye, Richard played one more song for us, "Sude Sude."

(upbeat music) It was the perfect close to a day that began with the burgers he and Geri served at their restaurant and opened the door to so many memories.

We heard how music shaped Richard's life, how his family is carrying it forward, and how closely our families have stayed connected.

And more than anything, it reminded me how important chosen family is.

Whether through genocide, migration, or other circumstances, where we cannot or even choose not to be with our given families, chosen family can create ties as strong or even stronger than blood ties.

And back at the grill, my dad said it best.

- It's a treasure.

Friends that I have have always been so important to me.

Even though we don't see each other every day, but now whenever Richard is playing somewhere, we like to go to be part of it.

And they just, they're all sweet people.

We were lucky to have friends like that.

We were, and folks got it started, but it was nice.

(upbeat music) (cheerful music) (Richard sings in foreign language) - ]Jul] Production funding for "Jul's Armenian Kitchen" is provided by Fowler Packing Company, three generations of family farming in California Central Valley, bringing Peelz citrus and Samsons grapes to families nationwide.

More information at fowlerpacking.com.

Ohanyans of Fresno.

For more than 40 years, Ohanyans has preserved Armenian culinary traditions through handcrafted products rooted in heritage, quality, and craftsmanship.

What began in the Central Valley is now shared nationwide.

For more information, visit ohanyans.com.