Foods of Africa & the Enslaved with Michael Twitty
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- čas přidán 3. 06. 2024
- Apologies for the auto-focus issues for the first 6 minutes of the video. It clears up after that.
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PHOTO CREDITS
Gullah woman makes a sweetgrass basket: By Mattstone911 - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, commons.wikimedia.org/w/index...
Gullah Basket: By Bubba73 (Jud McCranie) - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, commons.wikimedia.org/w/index...
Fufu from Ghana: By Kwameghana - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, commons.wikimedia.org/w/index...
Mofongo: By Thejas - www.flickr.com/photos/thejas/..., CC BY 2.0, commons.wikimedia.org/w/index...
A woman selling yam tubers: Salam Abiodun, CC BY-SA 4.0 creativecommons.org/licenses/..., via Wikimedia Commons
Pounding Fufu: By Kwameghana - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, commons.wikimedia.org/w/index...
Preparing Fufu: By PGskot - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, commons.wikimedia.org/w/index...
Pounded Fufu: By daSupremo - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, commons.wikimedia.org/w/index...
Omotouo: By daSupremo - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, commons.wikimedia.org/w/index...
Iyán: By Shardayyy - 044:365 - 06/13/2012 - Iyan & Efo-Riro, CC BY 2.0, commons.wikimedia.org/w/index...
Jollof Rice - By Noahalorwu - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, commons.wikimedia.org/w/index...
Chin Chin: By Reigninginvictory - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, commons.wikimedia.org/w/index...
Ossabaw Hog: By Carly & Art from Washington, DC - Ossabaw Hog, CC BY-SA 2.0, commons.wikimedia.org/w/index...
#tastinghistory
Sorry for the autofocus issues at the beginning. They clear up around 6 minutes in.
Don't worry max! This is a treat🎉🎉🎉🎉❤❤❤❤
Michael is a treasure. I would love to see more collaborations with him.
This means so much. I'm trying to back learn so much about my heritages as a biracial European. I'm excited for the future episode too.
@TastingHistory Hey max, asmongold reviewed your video on hot doctor pepper, he just published it. Thought you might want to check that out
You read my comment and asked about fufu!! Thank you!!!
The "have you eaten rice" is a cultural thing for me too! Lol the word "rice" is synonymous to "food." I love that little bit of linguistic history.
Yes! Similarly in english, we say 'meal'- which originally meant ground food, such as 'oat meal' or 'corn meal'
@@ttt5020such a neat fact thank you
@@TheFrenchmanCooks Interesting! I heard that the term for rice was used for a general meal, but didn't know the exact term. Thank you :)
Sawat-dee-krub. Yes, this is the case in Thailand, a rich food culture and history, with unquestionably the greatest street food and a cuisine that harmonizes in one dish myriad different foods, textures, flavors and tastes like no other. Pom choppe aharn Thai. Doo-aye aharn Lao, as in the northeast region of Issarn
@@ttt5020I’ve just consulted the Oxford English Dictionary and the statement appears to be slightly inaccurate. There are 2 words meal( one is a reg noun the other is mass noun) which are in fact homonyms i think. The first ‘meal’ word came from Old English mæl which carried the sense of ‘measure’, fixed time, while the other word meal which indeed carries the sense of oat meal etc came from Old English ‘melu’ which also traces back to latin word « molere » - to grind.
If you happen to find any info that would prove otherwise I would greatly appreciate it
Max, you are a great listener. You let Michael tell his story and not make it about you by interrupting with jokes or input like so many interviewers. Thank you.
underrated part of this video. i barely even looked at max for most of the video, good on you!
@@QuintenKilborn we know when to listen when certain people are speaking.
@@imjustaguy8232 some do , some don't . Others don't listen but just wait for their turn to speak.
Really listening is an underrated skill ESPECIALLY for a content creator.
I was thinking the same thing! Interviewers who actually listen are the best. Such a simple concept!
This, it was great to have Max guide the interview with well prepared questions and then have Michael get all the space to really let his expertise shine.
Interesting about fufu. I'm a wedding minister, and an African-American couple wanted to do something like the pounding of the yam flesh, showing that they are willing to work together as a couple. They're willing to work to make the marriage strong. However, the ceremony was in a Ritz hotel, so the big container and huge pounding sticks wouldn't work. Instead, they got a mortar & pestle, we used salt (from the earth), and every time I asked an "I Do" question, they'd respond, then together crunch the salt. Turned out really well! If anyone else is considering this ritual for their own wedding ceremony.
revolting pagan ritual.
@@TannyWannyhave you been to a catholic mass? There are so many rituals and traditions involved. Much of any kind of religious services are helping folks interpret religious doctrine. Why not use physical objects to help visualize something spiritual? It's literally just a communication tool. Calm down.
@@TannyWannylet me guess you celebrate Christmas, Easter, and Halloween? Christmas originates from saturnalia the birth celebration of the sun god, Eostre was an anglo Saxon goddess and april was "Eostre monath" (Esotre's month) and since it fell near Passach (passover) its tradition syncretized to convert pagans. And Halloween is from the Celtic Samhain, you'd dress up in guises to confuse the spirits who were out that night and give gifts of sweets or offerings to those spirits which would eventually become trick or treating
Even birthday celebrations with candles, everything is a "revolting pagan ritual"
@@tux_duhincorrect about the christmas its well known its related to winter solstice 👇
"The origins of Christmas stretch back thousands of years to prehistoric celebrations around the midwinter solstice. And many of the traditions we cherish today have been shaped by centuries of changing beliefs, politics, technology, taste and commerce. "
wrong, wrong and wrong again. none of this is news to me and i DO NOT 'celebrate' ANY of those. also, i am NOT catholic. but thanks for being such a presumptuous and pedantic wannabe-intellectual, parroting what you've heard without a single real thought of your own. @@tux_duh
First saw him on Townsends. Great presenter and storehouse of historical knowledge.. Thanks for having him on.
Same here. Michael is a wealth of knowledge and I am so glad it is being saved to be passed down. I love learning about the history of food.
That's where I saw him first, as well. He always brings amazing, essential background for tales too-little told. I'm glad Max had him on the show! ❤
I wish Townsends would talk more about the Africans and subsequent African Americans. So much of the early American food, tools, traditions etc come from them and they are barely mentioned.
@anastasiarene6617 it depends. They tend to focus on the "New England" style frontier. While American culture overall has been heavily influenced by African and Native cultures, a lot of the time and style they focus in "had its own answers". There's a million ways to skin a cat, and everyone had to answer these questions. A Scottish Highlander in the Appalachian Mountains (the same exact geological chain in fact) isn't going to want or need to broaden his horizons so to speak. He has all the answers that he knows works. It's much later when innovations and expediency bleeds through the culture to change that
@@ThrawnFett123 umm… that’s a bit off, bro. A Scottish Highlander in the Appalachian Mountains did _not_ just “have all the answers” to living in the ‘same geological chain’ - everything you wrote is just ignorant. The ‘cultural bleeding’ you’re referring to took place pretty immediately, particularly from the indigenous peoples, to help foreigners survive. Do more research, not even much, and you’ll find this.
My dad grew up in a very poor family since his daddy died when he was 11. He would not allow my mom to serve any cooked greens because he remembers running out of food and picking greens along the railroad tracks. That is sometimes all they had to eat. He also kept the heat on 75 in the winter because he hated being cold. His mom was an excellent cook and was known for her pies. She could make a delicious pie from almost nothing. I enjoyed this episode. May you both have a very happy holiday season.
Happy holidays!
This is quite fascinating! It's like a detective work trying to decipher recipes and histories behind them. Michael Twitty is doing a great job interpreting the history of African cuisine and how it integrated into American every-day recipes. Thank you, Max, for bringing in such an amazing guest!
Actually a lot of traditional European cuisines use “lesser” parts of the animal, with the aim of using everything.
People have to eat, everywhere, and traditional European dishes are often very hearty and rustic, lots of stews, lots of “put what you have in a pot and cook it for three hours” dishes. Depending on what grows you have different ingredients but the idea is the same.
It’s a bit forgotten now, or seen as “grandma’s cuisine”, “peasant dishes” but some are pretty emblematic. “Pieds paquets” (pig trotters slowly cooked with herbs and onions etc) are a recognised part of the South of France culinary landscape, as well as “boeuf bourguignon” in the north-east, which was made with tough meat, and wine to help make it tender.
What people think of when saying “European cuisine” is only the food of the rich people, that got imported because it was trendy.
it’s absolutely not what our grandparents or even our parents grew up eating.
Yes!
That's so true. I'm from the southwest of Germany (Allgäu) and because of the harsh climate and not so fertile soil people were quite poor before they switched to dairy farming and tourism.
So there are many traditional and now nearly forgotten dishes like baked cows udder, cows tripe (a part of the stomach) in sour sweet brown sauce or sour lung.
How is wine for peasants? It’s so expensive
@condor237 not uncommon at all for cheap, sometimes dilute table wine to be had even in the most impoverished households in Europe historically, not to mention occasionally home brewed.
@@condor237 first : meat was expensive, and was not eaten everyday. Boeuf bourguignon was a Sunday dish.
Also : bad wine (« piquette ») is very cheap. Even dirt poor people drank wine, Nowadays the commercially available wines are good wines, but there was a lot of (bad) local/household production, used pure for cooking or diluted for drinking (because you can’t drink it pure, it tastes too bad).
Also the soil and the geography of the region makes it so that in some places nothing grows but grapevines, and so you almost always had access to some wine, be it yours of a friend’s or your uncle’s… you can only eat so much grape before it goes bad. So cooking and drinking wine, and vinegar for preserves.
Think about how lobster or eel sometimes is/was peasant food, depending on where/when you lived :)
My older sister (my dad's daughter) used to find it so weird that we had rice for almost every meal. Her mom is from the Midwest. I didn't realize that you could have other starches for dinner until I went to one of my white friend's house when I was like 10.
As a Hispanic, this is true other than rice, yuca, and platano, what else could you have lol
Polish and boiled potatoes 😂
LOL! As a white English kid who went to Roman Catholic school, I had no idea until I was in my late teens I think that there were starches other than white potatoes and spaghetti 😂
@@musingwithreba9667 - When I was a kid, I wouldn't eat a dinner if it didn't have potatoes of some kind. When I was in my late teens and started to go to fine restaurants that often served rice side dishes, I related rice with expensive fine dining. ^_^ Perspectives are so funny!
I grew up thinking I didn’t like rice, because my mom made Minute Rice on the rare occasions that we had rice. 😝
When I left home, joined the navy and went to San Diego, I learned that rice could be delicious! Due to the cooking of the Philippinos and the Mexicans that live there. Thanks!
PS. I only use real rice in my house! 😁
I was born in Bluefields, Nicaragua. The city is very diverse with African genes and culture being dominant. My grandmother was from Martinique and used to grind, wash, and dry cassava she called it “farina”. The process removes the cyanide. We eat a lot of plantains, taro, cassava. When served whole, we mash it on the plate. The food is very Caribbean, rondon (rundown in Jamaica, pati (patty), Couvillion, etc. Coconut milk and palm oil are used in most dishes.
My dad was born in Managua! Him and his family moved to the US in the 80s because of the war. I had the privilege of going to Nicaragua when I was younger, and I was so amazed by how rich the food culture is there. Unfortunately the closest Nicaraguan restaurant to me is over two hours away, but I love to get a taste of the culture whenever I visit my grandparents house :)
as a child I adored Gullah Gullah Island. It's how I learned of Gullah Geechee. As a Louisianian I was taught about the Creole culture in our state but it took me ages to find the similarities between Louisiana Creole and Gullah Geechee.
I grew up watching it in NC! The guy who played the dad in the show also was in a group called the Georgia Sea Island singers who I got to see live. They kept historical gulla music alive. Worth a listen
Got to come to gullah gullah island, gullah gullah!
I loved that theme song even though it wasn't targeted at my age group.
Gullah Gullah Island was the best!
I am a Louisiana Creole and Gullah Geechee has nothing to do with us Louisiana Creoles even if we both have West african in our culture. Gullah Geechee is a seperate language and people found in SC, flordia, and Georgia while my Language being Kouri-Vini. Louisiana creole culture is from Louisiana but in the ealry 1900s branched out to cali, texas, and chicago.
The West African in my culture is from Senegal and Mali similar to Haitians coming from Senegal hence why we have parallels in our culture though we speak a different language. Louisiana Creole is different from Haitian though due to us being actual mixed people with our culture and language also having Naitve American in it HOWEVER in Louisiana we called Haitians Black Creoles due to their similarities.
Point is there are a lot of different Creole languages and people. Alaskan Creole for example is just people mixed with Russian and Native American while Afro Seminole Creoles are only mixed with West African and Native American (they are found in Florida and also separate from Gullah Geeche).
Edit: if you are wondering as to why I'm pointing this out it's because a lot of non creoles think all of us Creoles speak the same languge, have the same history, culture etc when we are all unique to each other even though we embrace each other as a while. In essence we are like Latinos.
Love that he brought up archaeology as a way to reconstruct food (and oral history, too!). I had several classes about the archaeology of food and it was one of the things I could have seen myself getting into, back when I still thought I could become a prefessional scholar. (I´m still angry I lost that paper on the reconstruction of Minoan dishes that I used to have).
Edit: This prompted me to look it up again and I found it in an astonishingly short time. It´s Chapter 10 in Ceramics, cuisine and culture: the archaeology and science of kitchen pottery in the ancient Mediterranean world. Just throwing this ot here for fun :-)
Thank you. My dad (Jamaican, born 1924) taught me all about this when I was a little girl. He was taught by his dad, and his dad was taught by his grandfather. Though there is a big Scottish relationship, the african contribution is something my father always told me about, where the fruits and vegetables came from, as far as he could tell me, he told it. The Spanish, Portuguese, native peoples, outlawed slaves (Jerk). He told us all. If you can get hold a book by Norma Benghiat, which covers old time Jamaican dishes, she cuts right down to the origins, not printed now, but look out for it. Great, great book (her recipe for patties is AMAZING). I love the book/video High On The Hog as well, so fascinating to see the stuff my Jamaican parents introduced to us from it's origins..
I'm an African American woman who married a Ghanaian man. I spent 15 years learning how to make and consume fufu, dried fish, goat and all kinds of stews. My whole extended family absolutely loves the dipping of the fufu into the soup. It was weird to hear a food historian speak of these foods with a type of disdain. Just as many cultures adapt to and love Indian and Korean food, it's the same with African food. I brought spicy palaver sauce to a potluck one time and I thought the fermented fish smell would turn people off. Those folks were scraping the bottom of the pot with glee. African food of all kinds is pleasurable and fun to eat and I hope this video doesn't turn people off from trying the authentic dishes, not just rice and fried foods.
I imagine he will try it again and acquire the taste. My take on the story was more that he thought he knew everything he was getting into and was still surprised by the flavors.
I took a few Africana studies courses in college and thought the foods were Interesting but so different than what we eat here. Rice, yam fufu, cassava, goat, chicken, fish.
It was definitely gooey.
I love Michael Twitty! The way he presents his information is genuinely so immersive and helps you to get the full scope of the situation enslaved Africans were in. Hoping you two have a blessed holiday if you're celebrating at this time ❤
Ditto, I read this guy’s book in high school and absolutely loved every moment of it
Right there with you. He never rambles or gets away from the story, he always relays every detail in perfect order so our attention is rapt the entire time. It's a genuine pleasure to learn from him.
This video is the most welcome surprise ever! I absolutely love Michaels depth of knowledge and his ability to inform others. This is the collaboration that we all needed.
Michael Twitty is a national cultural treasure. I've been following Tasting History for a long time, but I've never been moved to comment before. Thank you Michael Twitty. Thank you Max Miller; I hope you do a cooking/recipe episode with Mr. Twitty soon.
The origin story of the "hush puppy" immediately sounded extremely unlikely to me, as someone who has been around a lot of dogs. It would only take a dog a second or two to scarf down something like a hush puppy. If you really wanted to distract a dog with food you would toss it a bone with meat that it would chew for more time.
Yeah, part of training a dog to follow a scent is leaving small treats for them to find along the trail. So dropping treats would simply encourage them to continue following.
Maybe it was wishful thinking.
Are / were small children ever referred to as "puppies"? That's kind of what I've always thought "hushpuppy" meant originally: a small and tasty fried treat to keep hungry children quiet. I'm not American though, so this may be miles off 😊
@@1midnightfish In the American South, pretty much everything is called "puppy" in the right context. For example, if I want you to hand me the pencil on your desk, I'd say, "Toss me that puppy!"
@@Migratoryprimate 😂 thank you! Like some people might say "bad boy"?
Michael had the right amount of sass 😂
I was so appreciate how he's honest and tells you straight up that you probably won't like authentic authentic African food but there will be dishes that appeal to you.
I live in New Zealand and this video, along with "Best Ever Food Review Show" as inspired me to see if we have a local African food restaurant or street food (outside of Egypt, we have plenty of those)
West or East Africa.
Michael Twitty is a national treasure. I think interviews like this adds to how much I love @tastingHistory
@@WolverineXOXO Jeez, who spilt your milk?
He seems unhealthy kind of tho..
@imjustaguy8232 that's not a nice thing to comment on. We don't know him personally, or his health or life. If a person can't change the thing in two seconds, you shouldn't comment on it. Many blessings ❤
@@imjustaguy8232 Lots of people have health problems, even those we would consider to be 'healthy'. Did you know that the heart rate of long-distance runners can dip so low in their sleep that they have to wear an alarm or they might die?
The, “have you eaten rice,” is something I also can relate to, as an Asian person - our culture also has a big focus on rice. I also am happy that Chef Twitty admitted to not liking some of the, “native,” foods of his descended culture. I am descended from Korean stock, and a food associated with them is kimchi - which if you do not know is fermented, spicy cabbage. Sometimes other vegetables, but I always associate it with cabbage. I. Cannot. Stomach it. At all. I feel it is one of the most insipid substances I have ever tried. So thank you sir, for admitting it. Makes me feel better.
Question, are there any specifc Korean foods you'd encourage people to try if it's the first time them trying it
I am Korean too! I've lived in the US for awhile now (almost 2/3rd of my life), and I enjoy a lot of American and other cuisines (Mexican, Central and South American, Indian, German, Greek) over the food I grew up eating. I get accused by Koreans of no longer being Korean, but
@@mylesjude233 If you would like to try Korean food, kimbap is a good place to start. Like sushi but no raw fish. Usually it contains carrots/cucumbers/radish, egg, and cooked beef. Bibimbap is also accessible for most palettes. Japchae is a good noodle dish. Pajeon and yaki mandu are good starters if you're unfamiliar with the food. Sigeumchi will familiarize you with common vegetable seasonings
@@beantheirishsetter Thanks for the recommendations
Im from mexico and i dont like spicy food at all
As an Aussie interested in absolutely everything I love being amazed! This was incredible! Max and Mike you have just given me a precious Christmas gift of knowledge
@ColinDagwell - Yes .^_^.
Man, I remember reading Michael Twitty’s The Cooking Gene when I was in high school and it was the first book I read that got me into the cooking CZcamsr genre. full circle moment seeing my two favorite creators come together
Thanks Max….great to see you with one of my favorite people….the amazing Michael Twitty.
Mr. Twitty…. You are loved and appreciated.🙏🏾
Absolutely love this sort of video. The regular content is incredible, of course, but adding in more longer chats like this with experts would be a very welcome addition to the channel! Thanks for inviting Michael to share this knowledge. I always learn so much from your videos!
Coming from Asia, I found African food very easy to get used to, because the foundations are so similar. The pasty starch- instead of fufu, we have taro and tapioca in a lot of things. The smoked/fermented fish- we have fish sauce, belacan etc in so much of our cooking. Spicy one-pot stews- we have curries. Jollof rice? Very like briyani. I had the chance to spend three weeks in Ghana earlier this year and I absolutely loved all the indigenous food. The only one I was iffy about was okra, as I don't really like that gloopy, slimy texture (mucilage is the technical term), but I got to try it in stew two ways, using fresh okra (which was that texture) and dried powdered okra, which was totally different and a revelation.
Frankly the stews and sauces were the best part of the cuisine, because otherwise the food was very basic- fried chicken and fish, boiled eggs, Asian-style stir-fries with instant noodles (Indomie brand is super popular there) or fried rice. The starch (usually omotuo, banku, fufu or kenkey) is dense and sits like a brick in the bottom of your stomach. Makes sense as it's the primary filler and you'll feel full after every meal, even if you're poor and can't afford to eat anything else. Spicy fried sliced plantains called kelewele were amazing though, my choice of starch everytime if I could have a choice.
Ghana has nice food. Same with Nigeria. Nigeria also has many nice meats like Suya, Asun, Dabunnama, Kilishi which when you taste you cant call basic if you taste it. So if you are looking for more complex meat flavours come to Nigeria. Hausas make beef and Chicken well, Yorubas make beef, goat, chicken, turkey, fish well. There is also Yoruba street snack of fried fish and anchovies called yoyo. You should try some Yoruba and Nigerian cuisine.
There are some shared with ghana like jollof, fried rice, fried plantains and different version of okro and Fufu but theres many other amazing non shared dishes. Also have Iyan, Amala, Lafun, Eba, Yoruba Fufu (which is different)etc are Yoruba Nigerian version of the starches (which is called Okele) for soups which are different from that of Ghana. Akara, Moi Moi, Asaro, Ofada, etc are some Yoruba foods you shouldn't miss. Also a lot of snacks you can enjoy Nigeria, especially the South west.
The Hush Puppy story I heard here in central Florida (near Tampa), is that a cook was tired of the dogs barking while she was cooking, so threw some fried dough at the dogs to hush them up. Knowing dogs, they would just whine for more food. ;)
My husband and his family are from this area and that's the story they told me, too.
That's the story I always heard, and I live in northeast Missouri.
Mississippi native here. That's the story I grew up with as well.
There's also the chuckwagon story, where the cook would throw them at the dogs that were usually along on a wagon train to quiet them.
Growing up in Texas, this is always the version I heard@@anastasiarene6617
It's so nice to see you doing an interview of another food historian and especially someone like Michael. I'm really looking forward to seeing the regular episode you two did!
I know we won't know what the video will be about until it's out next week. But what would you like to see them cover 🤔
This was such a wonderful and interesting video! An African friend once took me to a local West-African restaurant where I had Iyan and Nyama Choma here in the Netherlands and I was blown away. It became one of my favorite restaurants for years and learned so much. Not just about food but about culture and our unfortunate part of the history of enslaved people. Which I obviously was very well aware of through dry history lessons but actually talking with descendants of that horrible time over delicious meals gave it a whole new meaning.
Thank you mr. Twitty for sharing your knowledge and thank you Max for the introduction!
Michael Twitty! Saw him on Townsends video years ago now he appears on Tasting History. Awesome !
That’s where I first saw him too!
@@TastingHistoryMe too! I remember LOVING watching him making the barbecue special as well as the akara.
MICHAEL TWITTY!!!!!!!!!!!!! Seriously, if you can see Michael Twitty speak in person run do not walk. (if you can taste something he's cooked run even faster!) So glad to see him on Tasting History. Also props on the editing job for this Q&A, it was nicely done with the intercut images and the like.
I love this conversation. I grew up in the Gullah Corridor and their cuisine is very influential. When I was in school I lived next door to a Gullah lady who was a chef at a fancy hotel. She would often make me food, especially during exam time. I still dream about her fried pork chops, which she marinated in hot sauce. 😋
I find food history so fascinating. It brings you to a person in a time and place, with the various cultural aspects and influences you wouldn't have realized were there.
This was such an amazing video! I really like the dialogue structure that leads to good tangent stories :) The Fufu to Poi conection was so galaxy brain.
I've eaten a lot of fufu (and banku) and it reminds me of ugali but not as tasty. I really struggled to eat it and the dried fish (that we put in stew). Michael's description is exactly how I felt about it which makes me feel much better
Food historians are some of the most overlooked writers about, and keepers of, history. So thankful people, like Max and Michael, are here to help save us from forgetting our culinary past.
This was such a wonderful conversation, I learned so much, thank you! Also, on the subject of "women have always wanted to make things easier" I am reminded of a Swedish (I think? might have been Norwegian) a few years back where they were trying to trace folk recipes for a particular traditional dish. Every family has their own family recipe, and they all swear that's The Old-Fashioned Way They've Always Done It. Problem: like 70% of those "old family recipes" come from a single cookbook in the mid-20th Century (the equivalent of Betty Crocker, one that everyone had) with just a few tweaks. And of course the recipe uses modern ingredients and equipment.
Max asking great questions reflecting a commitment to engaging with the cultures and Michael demonstrating all the anthropology chops that preserve culture in the chronicling of history. So glad this was shared!
So glad you and Michael caught up with each other and had such a lovely conversation to share with us all! You both have such a generosity of spirit when it comes to food and knowledge, and a deep respect for the people who made and ate the dishes you talk about, and those shared values made for such a delightful video. (And, selfishly, I loved seeing your face again, Michael, last time was a year ago at a marvellous Gaithersburg library talk.) I hope you both get to spend more time together and make more food!
We have our equivalent of "have you eaten rice" Thing in pashto. We will say "have u eaten bread(rotai)" Because we eat flat break (roti, rotai) with almost every dish
I'm reminded of the Tibetan restaurant that opened near us when I was a kid. My dad had to work really hard to convince the owner that he wanted to try actual Tibetan foods (not just the common Chinese recipes on the menu) because many of the flavor profiles are very different. But he wanted to try it, even if it wasn't what he would normally consider tasty, so she was eventually persuaded. (I don't think he liked it but he did think it was interesting.)
Wonderful episode! I learned so much from Michael Twitty. Food and history are inextricably intertwined, and Max and Michael bring them both alive.
Oh my goodness!! This was a wonderful Q & A and I learned so much! You both are so lovely and, Max, I could see you getting emotional as Michael spoke about certain things which showed what an empathetic and thoughtful person you truly are. What a wonderful Christmas gift this was for all of us! Thank you! ♥
So wonderful to see more stuff with Mr. Twitty. You can just hear the passion for history and food in his voice. It really inspires me to delve into my Creole heritage and food.
I learned about Mr. Twitty from the Townsends channel. His knowledge is great and I’m so pleased he has shared it with us. Thanks for hosting him.
When I cook Ghanain and other West African dishes I love doing everything the traditional aka hard way. I use an Asanka and Tapoli to mash and blend the food, it’s labor intensive but the taste is worlds apart from using a blender. My arm strenght from that and using a paddle to mix Fufu and Kenkey. My favorite dishes are Waakye, Okro Stew, Mbanga Soup, Garden Eggs and Bambara Nuts. The African species of rice is different from the Asian variety we all grew up with and amazing. I shopped at a Ghanain food at a West African market in the Bronx and I would get ribbed by the men who hung out there.They caled me “Irish” so I was not the usual customer. My interest was noted by one of the men who truned out to be a chef and that was a fortutious day. He took me to the kichen of his resturant and taught me how to cook Shito properly, which turns out is not that easy and why people buy it already made. He showed me the proper way to prepare and finish dishes and gave me an appreciation and stinking fish and red palm oil. Learning from someone who emigrated from Ghana is something I will always treasure, just as I did from my Grandparents and other elders in my neighborhood. East African food is a whole other world which is where I’m living in my kitchen this year.
I loved reading the Cooking Gene, thanks for having Michael on the show.
What a wonderful opportunity to listen to Mr Twitty. Whenever I listen to a history-teller and history-keeper like him I am always so grateful for all those who help us remember and understand our pasts, especially in the face of all the rumours and shallow learning of an internet world. Thanks for your time and learning, keep on with all this, both of you x
12:00 In Barbados, we have something like a cross between polenta and fufu called coucou (made with cornmeal, breadfruit, or green banana) that's served with flying fish and okra as part of the national meal. And as much as I want to connect to my black roots, it's the absolute *worst*. However, I do share that disgust in common with my mother! Ah well.
Embracing blackness doesn't always mean that you've got to enjoy everything, just appreciate the love and pain that it took to fet there.
If you don't mind me asking, what's so unpleasant about it?
@@samovarsa2640 The texture is the worst like the gummiest mashed potatoes. The weirdly bland-sweet flavor pairs well with the spicy fish. But if you like fufu or squishy-slimy textures, you'll like this!
@@kbomb234connecting to me Scottish roots usually means bland British food/bland in general. The only good food is this one fish and chips place with a line up a mile long and whiskey. Personally if I don’t like a traditional meal i can change it to be more palatable. Which cooks have been doing for millennia so it’s no big deal. Except for the Italians.
@@NaviRyanshortbread (a style of buttery cookie) is also part of Scottish culinary history, as well as deep fried chocolate bars 😉 and if you like offal, you'll enjoy a well made authentic haggis.
This is so interesting, thank you Michael and Max! The story of the boy and the partially-cooked beans and hearing the voice of history through him is so moving. I've recently been working in a traditional (southern Chinese-style) foodway and it's been really special to be able to bring stories from work back to my Grandmother, and she can tell me how her father did the same things before they were refugees. It's so important to be able to come back to these things and yes, exactly - to know these things suddenly makes so much of yourself make more sense. It feels whole. All power to you and your work
In Sweden, we’ve got this thing called palt which is basically a dumpling with dough made out of potatoes and flour, filled with chopped-up salted pork belly (you can use bacon, but it’s better to get a similar fatty pork thing that’s not smoked). You eat it with a bit of butter to melt over the hot dumplings, and also some lingonberry jam (cranberry jelly is a good substitute). It sounds like it’d be similar to a lot of dishes cooked in the US south. It’s not fancy food, it’s simple peasant fare that’ll keep you warm and sated and strong so you can do hard work. My grandmother makes the best palt ever, and I think everyone thinks their own grandma/whatever relative makes the best palt.
This video went by way too fast, I loved it ❤
I love seeing those connections being made through those precious bits of history that still remain, it really is like hearing a mystery being solved and it's gratifying. If you and Michael did a podcast called "Food Mysteries", I would never miss an episode!
Thank you both for this video, it was like an unexpected holiday gift and I hope you guys collab again!
We have used Michael's work to teach history and culture in an educational greenhouse! Sir, you do incredible work and are building the strength of generations!
I’ve always had my own idea about how hush puppies were born. Mine is a little mundane, but it makes sense to me.
I suggest that hush puppies were a by product of frying fish. You had a mixture of egg and milk, seasoned flour, and cornmeal to bread the fish. When you were done frying all the fish, you had flour, eggs, milk and cornmeal left over. Back then (and even today) you wouldn’t have just thrown those leftover ingredients away. So I think a clever cook decided to mix that stuff together, and fry spoonfuls of it to use it up. Turned out to be quite delicious!
What do you think?
I was always told that hush puppies were fee to the dogs under the table during dinner to keep them from whining for the food up top. Yes, I grew up with dogs always under the dinner table.
That's different than the story I heard growing up in central Florida. It was a cook throwing them to the dogs to hush them up while she was cooking.
That sounds like the kind of story you'd tell to kids for fun rathern than genuine history.
@@Direk091 No, I head that story from many different people and apparently others did as well. All of these stories could be true or none of them. If you are frying something that is battered, a little ball of dough being fried is inevitable.
Sadly I’ve not had the opportunity to try much African foods, I’ve tried Ethiopian food and loved it but that’s basically it. It’s my belief that every single place on Earth has some kind of great food made there, and it’s a great sadness that I’ll never be able to get to try it all. I am very grateful that you are willing to share this culinary knowledge, food is very emotional and personal, and it carries memories.
Amazing! would love more guests providing unique insight. Thank you for sharing Michael!
Agree! I'd personally love to see Sean Sherman (The Sioux Chef), Nephi Craig or Crystal Wahpepah, among others, for Indigenous cuisine discussion, too!
It genuinely made a few tears fall to hear Twitty call-to-action people to become academics. It hurts because I got kicked out of grad school for English lit earlier this year -- I was done with all my classes save one that was an incomplete (with a 3.4 gpa), according to school regulation I wasn't even allowed to sign up for classes that semester, and because of all that, they stopped me from doing my comprehensive exams, delayed my graduation, and eventually kicked me out of the program and barred me from reapplying for two years. I'm 36, I started university at 30, and all I really wanted was an excuse to play Buffy the Vampire Slayer in the stacks. $100,000 in student debt later, I can't even function anymore. It's more pain than I've ever felt and I was homeless for a bit in my 20s.
Anyway, definitely go be an academic but temper your expectations. I got no help at my university. Every conference, every publication I earned from beginning to end, and that was with constantly asking for help. Anywho, hooray knowledge
As useless as it might be, coming from someone who has no clue, what you went through emotionally in these past years, I sincerely hope you have a happy life and that after all you went through, you never stop walking forward. Without meaning to sound wise, time moves relentlessly anyways, might as well just live in it as well. :D Have a nice one mate. :)
I don't know if this will come as a comfort, but your story gives me hope.
Despite what happened and despite your debt: you are alive to tell the tale.
My life changed drastically at 14 and I've spent the last 14 years steadily digging myself out of that hole. I burned out from my first attempt at college, burned out and developed a lasting injury at work, and am currently recovering my GPA so I can pursue a future in academia now that I have a better idea where my heart is and what I want to pursue.
I will be 30 before I can attempt to enroll where I want. I'm equal parts excited beyond words and terrified because, like you've experienced, things can change in an instant over a very trivial situation and that can throw life completely off the rails of where we want or need to be.
That being said: you're still kicking and able to share your story. Despite everything: there's air in your lungs and you have the opportunity to enjoy life, even with the stress of debt. You may be down, but you're not out - that gives me hope.
I've already had to drag myself out if the depths of myself before; even if things hit rock bottom for a time, I know that leaves nowhere to go but up in the end.
Best wishes to you and I hope things continue to improve; you deserve a happy life. Every chance you have, try to find the joys in this life; small or large, life is tremendously rewarding to enjoy.
Thank you Max and Michael for such an interesting Q&A. I was looking for some nonfiction reading and I now have Michael's books on the way. Max, I already have your cook book. This has made my day.
SO SO SO EXCITED for these videos! I love Michael Twitty and his work so much, and getting to appreciate y'all interacting (and learn more from Michael!) is awesome. Thanks, Max!
I remember Michael Twitty from High on the Hog on Netflix. He speaks with such passion about the people and food. Thanks for this interview.
We need more of this in the world today. Love of food, family. And able to communicate peacefully and honestly to one another.
Loved this episode. I have seen Michael Twitty on other programs and really enjoy his knowledge and passion about the subject. Just bought his book Kosher Soul!
Fun fact about eating spicy food in places like Mexico! It was recently found that it has a sort of cooling effect on the body. Possibly from increased sweat, but also possibly from the psychological part of finding 'relief' when the spiciness goes away, it tricks the brain into thinking you're cooler because capsaicin is itself tricking your heat receptors into thinking it is heat. So spicy foods seem to be way more enjoyable in the heat for that reason. I definitely ate more spicy food and enjoyed it near the equator than I do now while I'm up north, but maybe northerners just don't have good spicy food, or maybe my pallet changed as I aged. Either way, its fascinating to learn more cultures enjoy spicy food in hot climates. Science may just back up why.
This video brought a huge smile to my face. I loved hearing Michael talk - such a lovely human being! Thank you Max for introducing us to other creators and food historians! I'm definitely going to follow Michael after this and watch his Townsends videos :)
Oh this is great! I love him! I first learned about him on Townsends channel and I've clicked on anything with his name since! I have his first book on my wishlist for a while now, I should go and get myself a Christmas present
Seriously I can't recommend it highly enough!
Awesome video Max and Micheal. Twas a splendid interview, very informative. Can't wait to see what dish you and Micheal have cooking 😋
Much love for doing this good sit down with Michael rather than solely the upcoming episode together. I love listening to people who passionately and intelligently dive into parts of history that we have patchy and under-recorded info about. 💖
I just have to say this video was an absolute joy and so informative I have learned so much! Thank you Max and Michael for doing this, I wouldnt mind even a longer video, I could listen to you two all day! ❤
Food History is so fascinating!
This is so beautiful as a holiday treat 🇿🇼 Thank you Max and Michael
I did not get to watch the entire interview, but most of it . I will return for the rest. But as usual you have done an ASTOUNDING job bringing us History , and simply fascinating guests such as Michael. This is a truly fascinating and educational interview .
So excited to see this pairing! Michael Twitty is an amazing historian as well. Loving this "different" format as well. You've mentioned before you like to respect and turn to others for their area of focus or even their area of expertise- if you will. Appreciate you both SO SO much.
what a fab interview! Such a pleasure to see and hear such an engaging and warm conversation from two passionate food historians, and learn so much. Thank you very, much, Max, for sharing this conversation with Michael. I am inspired to learn more about my food voice and what me and my family's food experiences can 'bring to the table'. Wow, profound. thank you again
YES! I LOVE Michael Twitty! I've got The Cooking Gene on Audible (his narration is wonderful) and I'm just so glad to see two of my favorite food history people joining together. This is fantastic.
Thank you so much Max and Michael for spending a minute with us discussing such a fascinating topic. More! More! Please serve it forth!
Thank you for using your platform so I could hear from Michael. I'm so glad I was able to find his content after just finding this channel a few weeks ago. This was such an interesting dialogue to listen to as I cooked for my family
This was absolutely fascinating. Such an enjoyable watch. I could listen to Michael for hours. Thanks for the video. Can’t wait for the next one.
That story about the fufu was entertaining. Sounds like the process of making it is similar to the process of making mochi. This was great and very informative. Fantastic guest for the show!
Mochi was my thought as well
This man is an inspiration. His wealth of knowledge is sometimes humbling and something that I aspire to.
What a great colaboration. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you and yoursMax and Michael. Thx for doing this, filming it and sharing it with us. 👍👍👍👍👍
Thanks for this Max, and big thanks to Mr. Twitty as well, what a great interview/discussion/visit I'm going to have to watch it a couple more times, so much information in here.
I was not prepared to hear my state name out there (Veracruz), knowing about the dishes we share with the African people and the influence in the Caribbean! Really would like to listen to more on the subject ❤
I'm sure there's plenty of comments that could be added on familial naming idiosyncrasies. My father used to call men's cologne 'Stink Pretty'.
So cool!! You're the first food historian I followed and I love when you recommend others! This was such a good interview and I feel like I learned a lot!
Lovely collab! Thank you to Michael for sharing his food and history knowledge with us
Great video! Thank you for posting and bringing Mr Twitty
If Michael had a CZcams channel I'd subscribe but I found his FB page so I definitely gave him a follow. I love food and I love history and I learn so much from your channel and from other creators like Michael. This is so cool :)
Riveting interview! I, too, discovered Mr Twitty through the Townsends videos and very much want to read his book The Cooking Gene. I’m tickled that working with the Townsends was such a positive experience because it means they’re as cool and down to earth as they seem. I could easily watch another interview with this man just as long if not longer. Max is an excellent interviewer as well. Great job! Thanks for putting this together. I throughly enjoyed it!
Thank you for making this special interview episode! I love Q&A like this.
I love Michael! He’s so knowledgeable. Much needed today. Fan from Seattle Washington!
Love listening to a passionate specialist. Great interview!
This was a glorious conversation, I am definitely looking more forward to the upcoming video than usual!
Thank you for sharing this with us, Max.
I absolutely loved it ❤️
I actually love cassava fufu! My first job was at an Angolan-Portuguese company and the family that owned it invited me all the time to eat with them. Loved the food and the vibe. Big fan of chicken muamba. Really struggled with the heat at first being Swiss but it was worth it.
I love this episode. One of the most interesting in cultural history I have watched yet.
I watched this while relaxing after Christmas dinner, and I found it just delightful. Thanks to both of you for an interesting video, and Happy Holidays!
What a delightful video, you two! I, too, discovered Michael on Townsends. This was so interesting, informative, and entertaining. Well done! Thank you. Happy holidays to both of you.
My love for food history started with my introduction to Micheal Twiity about 5 years ago🥰
''have you had rice today? That's how you say 'have you eaten?'' It reminded me of South Korea and their habit of greeting each other with the same question ''have you eaten today?'' instead of ''how's it going?''. If I remember correctly, it started in 60s/70s when the food was scarce and people really wanted to make sure if their loved one wasn't hungry (pls correct me if I'm wrong).
"Ăn cơm chưa?" Stuff like that. The word for "cooked rice" is often used as a stand-in for an entire meal or period where you eat breakfast/lunch/dinner
What an absolute treat of a conversation. I loved loved loved Twitty's The Cooking Gene. It's beautifully written, full of incredible research, and it's so personal and emotional. I would recommend to anyone interested in food history.
Thanks for being on Tasting History Michael Twitty. I need to watch the additional videos you did with the Townsends. I will be picking up a copy of The Cooking Gene in the next week.
I've been on a quest recently to trace history through musical roots. Leading me to research Blues, Folk, and Country. Cheers