This month on the blog, we’re honoring Black History Month by talking about African American foodways and the history of Southern food. If you want to learn more – and you should – here’s where to start.
Essential Reading and Viewing
Books:
- The Cooking Gene: A Journey Through African American Culinary History in the Old South by Michael W. Twitty
- High on the Hog: A Culinary Journey from Africa to America by Jessica B. Harris
- Jubilee: Recipes from Two Centuries of African American Cooking by Toni Tipton-Martin
- The Jemima Code: Two Centuries of African American Cookbooks by Toni Tipton-Martin
- Black Food: Stories, Art, and Recipes from Across the African Diaspora edited by Bryant Terry
- Afro-Vegan: Farm-Fresh African, Caribbean, and Southern Flavors Remixed by Bryant Terry
Television/Streaming:
- High on the Hog: How African American Cuisine Transformed America (Netflix, hosted by Stephen Satterfield)
- A Chef’s Life (PBS, featuring Chef Vivian Howard in eastern North Carolina)
- Hungry For Answers (HBO Max, asking the question: Who gets to cook Black food?)
Writers and Food Historians to Follow:
- Michael W. Twitty
- Jessica B. Harris
- Toni Tipton-Martin
- Bryant Terry
- Stephen Satterfield
- Therese Nelson
- Adrian Miller
- Donna Battle Pierce
This is not an exhaustive list. There are many more Black food writers, chefs, historians, and cookbook authors doing incredible work. This is just a starting point.
Buy the books. Watch the shows. Follow these voices. Learn the history. And then cook the food with the knowledge of where it actually came from.
P.S. The Cooking Gene changed my life. Start there.
