New African American Kitchen: Angela Shelf Medearis

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Is it time for a renaissance of African-American food? With an African-American president-elect, no doubt some chefs are thinking that they had better get out their Southern and Soul Food cookbooks, brush up on their sweet potato pie and update their hush puppies. Jacques Pepin predicted back in 2005 when Super Chef interviewed him, that a reexamination of African-American cuisine was long overdo. He reminded us that most of the cooks in the kitchens where he worked when he got to America in the 1950s and 60s were African-Americans. There are plenty of rising African-American chefs, and chefs with backgrounds that are similar to Barack Obama's, like Morou Ouattara and Marcus Samuelsson, who have closer connections to Africa in terms of their immediate ancestors and look there for inspiration. Will we be seeing more Nouvelle African or inspired African-American, or whatever you want to call it? If Agela Shelf Medearis gets her way, we will see plenty of New African-American cuisine. The self-style Kitchen Diva is on a mission to re-evaluate the fragmented knowledge most of us have of African-American cuisine. The New African-American Kitchen (Lake Isle 2008) is a cookbook with many parts: African, The Caribbean, Slave Kitchens, as well as three additional sections that address special dietary needs by updating classics: Divabetics (diabetic cuisine), Getting Reacquainted (new African-American kitchen), Holidays of Our Own (African-American Traditions). It is filled with great recipes from Africa, the American South and her own imagination. It deserves a wider readership then just African-Americans readers and cooks. Angela runs a multimedia business that produces radio shows, a PBS cooking show, and an animated DVD project. One thing I've learned during my short tenure on television: if you are an African-American woman who wants folks to try tofu, it helps if you're wearing what I often wear on the show–a feather boa and a red satin apron with the hot pads on the bustier. I have often spoken about food and health issues dressed in traditional business garb. Then the Kitchen Diva was born and demanded that the masses and the media pay attention to her message. If you are trying to convince die-hard pork lovers to taste a vegetarian entrée, a red feather boa trumps a tailored business suit every time. (p. 9) Sounds like Angela has a thing or two to teach other TV story. African-Americans need to learn to eat healthier food, and teaching them takes the same kind of pizzazz that Emeril uses to embrace pork fat. The first chapter starts with a brief essay on African cuisine and slave cuisine. The recipes range all over Africa. Appetizers include Akara Balls (p. 19) that are much like falafel made of chickpeas to South African Pickled Fish (p. 21) in a curry, chile, and ginger marinade. Angela excels in stew recipes, from Groundnut Stew (p. 31) to Muhogo Tamu, an East African Beef and Cassava Stew (p. 33) to Doro We't (p. 35 Ethiopian chicken stew. These would go well with Moi-moi (p. 56) Steamed Bean Cakes, East African Sweet Potato Pudding (p. 58) flavored with saffron and cardamom, and Rice Foofoo (p. 59). There are enough interesting recipes in this chapter alone to explore Africa in many fine meals. When Angela turns to Making Do Slave Kitchens (p. 115-173), she recalls her own family's recipes. She writes about her own changing understanding of Aunt Jemima and the struggle of slave cooks to feed their own as well as their mistresses' families. The recipes include her grandmother Willie Mae's Green Tomato Chow Chow, (p. 118), Southern Fried Chicken (p. 128) from Elizabeth Ray, and Okra Gumbo (p. 142). The New African-American Kitchen is a great book for those who want to make healthier versions of family dishes, or reach further in the past to African dishes that inspired - and continue to inspire cooks. Previous articles: [Cookbook Reviews - complete] Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging --> back to Super Chef