“Koshersoul” & Appreciating & Elevating Food Cultures with Michael W. Twitty

On this episode of Taste Buds with Deb, host Debra Eckerling speaks with award-winning culinary historian, food writer and chef Michael W. Twitty. Twitty is the author of Koshersoul: The Faith and Food Journey of an African American Jew, which received the 2023 National Jewish Book Award. 

“I've grown up with …African diaspora foodways from the Caribbean, Latin America and foodways from African immigrants in the United States,” he says. “And I've lived an entire life with Jewish food from challah to kibbeh. Being able to translate across those cultural lines is really important for me.” 

Twitty is also the author of The Cooking Gene: A Journey Through African American Culinary History in the Old South, which won the 2018 James Beard Award for best writing as well as book of the year, and “Rice,” a Savor the South cookbook from The University of North Carolina Press.

In addition to sharing his food origin story (his food education started in his intergenerational family kitchen and with PBS food shows), Twitty talks about his love for exploring, elevating, and combining food cultures/foodways from around the world. He also explains the three parts to every food tradition, the value of mastering the trinities (the two or three or more ingredients that are the basics of every cuisine), and other cooking insights.

Follow @TheCookingGene on Instagram and MichaelWTwitty on Facebook. Learn more at KoshersoulBook.com and JewishJournal.com/podcasts. For more from Taste Buds, follow @TheDEBMethod on social media.