Celebrating the African Influences in African American Cuisine

The Legacy Quilt, a major highlight of the exhibition, seeks to fill up these knowledge gaps in our knowledge by recognizing the heroes of African American culinary culture, from enslavement to the present. A 14-foot-tall and almost 30-foot-wide handmade tapestry composed of 406 illustrations (printed and appliqued onto a variety of fabric) that depict the people, places, and movements that have influenced American cuisine, The Legacy Quilt also exists online, where stories can be added by those who’re not able to visit the exhibition in person.

One of the blocks on the quilt features Augustus Jackson, an African American and former White House cook in the 1820s who is known as “the father of ice cream” for his efforts in developing new flavors and figuring out the best way to transport the dessert. Another block tells the story of Nearest Green, the first African American master distiller on record in the United States, who taught Jack Daniel how to produce whiskey and helped to perfect an innovative whiskey manufacturing technique in Tennessee.

The quilt also features current food and drink producers, writers, like Kwame Onwuachi, a Forbes30 Under 30 recipient whose work celebrates Afro-Caribbean cuisine.

“We’re hoping that more people realize and appreciate the immense contribution that people of African descent have made in the culture and economy of America and the world at large,” says Chef Pierre Thiam, one of the advisors for the exhibition. "Those recipes, which are treasures of our culture, would have been lost if it hadn't been for our ancestors and their tradition of passing down recipes from generation to generation. The agricultural methods and ingredients that were brought to this nation like rice, black-eyed peas, and okra, would be forgotten.”

The connection between African and American cuisine is evident when you consider the origins of many of the foods symbolic of American culture. “Gumbo is a famous meal in Louisiana that comes from the African continent, where it is known as okra soup [in Nigeria] and soupou kanja in Senegal. Jambalaya is another traditional Louisiana meal that we know as jollof rice. There’s also hoppin' johns, a black-eyed peas and rice dish known in Senegal as thiebou niébé," Thierre says. “And that's the beauty of food, it transcends borders, because you always crave it, and then you bring it with you as you travel from place to place.”

These influences may be found all across the world, not only in the United States. Many African cuisines are popular in nations, from Mexico to Brazil, Ecuador, and the Caribbean region. "There's a huge African diaspora community in Castro Alves, which is a town in Brazil, and there's a popular meal there called acarajé, which is similar to akara in Nigeria but done a little differently," adds Iweala.

In African/American, these ties in the African diaspora are highlighted, allowing people to see the importance of African heritage and tradition, as well as how they integrate into society. The exhibition presents a history of food and drink, and the many ways that African Americans have shaped American culture, from enslaved cooks like Abby Fisher, who later published the second-known cookbook by a Black woman in the United States, to free people who became farmers, chefs, brewers, food writers, and more.

In addition to the quilt, another highlight of the exhibition is the Ebony Test Kitchen, a psychedelic kitchen designed in the 1970s, where Ebony’s food editor -- the first African American food editor at a major magazine -- Charlotte Lyons tested recipes for the magazine’s “Date with a Dish” column. These recipes would have an indelible imprint on American cuisine for decades to come.

The exhibition is a testimony of the skill and innovation of African and African American people who have influenced the customs of people in America and the rest of the world. “There's been a constant exchange of ideas, traditions, and cultures that impacts how African and African American groups function in the United States and across the diaspora,” Iweala says. “Our vision for this exhibition was to highlight the conversation and the creativity that comes with it.”