Spice up a holiday potluck with soul food dishes

>>> this morning in "today's" holiday kitchen, soul food for a pot luck dinner. food always tells a story. when it's your story, the dish is sure to be delicious. sharing his family's story, mar marcus samuelson, chef and owner of the red rooster harlem. great to see you, marcus.

>> good to see you. how are you?

>> your family's story is a good one, ethiopian, raised in sweden. walk us through this.

>> you had it at red rooster . you know. something like a fried chicken , put your own personality to it, right? for us it's really about the spices here. i have chile, paprika. shake just like this. fried some chicken here. do chicken bone in. i marinade here with coconut milk and buttermilk, right? we are just going to let that sort of -- add in the chicken.

>> where does that term come from, yard bird?

>> old school southern term.

>> i love it.

>> sounds a little more fun. we opened the restaurant wanted to have something with more personality than fried chicken . we call it fried yard bird. comfort food , something i love and we've been really success ful with, you know.

>> how long do we go in the fryer here?

>> i would say about 12 minutes or so on medium heat. when the bird is ready, all right, you add all the spices we put on there.

>> heavy as you want?

>> absolutely. this is really -- where are you from?

>> i'm from jersey.

>> what sort of flavors did you grow up with?

>> in jersey? raw sewage was one. no, no, no. it's a great place. i don't mean to stereotype. the garden state .

>> when you go to potluck, bring your family recipes.

>> it's a great place. i want to be clear.

>> you know, i grew up with a lot of salmon.

>> you get at the deli, right?

>> basically that's what you get at the deli, pickled onions. that's a sandwich. isn't that perfect for a pot luck ? i also brought you some lemon pudding.

>> oh, my goodness.

>> lemon bread pudding .

>> is that like the regular bread pudding but you add some lemon?

>> absolutely. bread pudding , little lemon.

>> wow! oh, my goodness.

>> who is the better cook?

>> who has the bigger head.

>> literally or figuratively?

>> we'll leave that one.