Learn about the ways African American food and cooking, as well as African American chefs, have influenced American taste, from the historical foods of Africa to modern day twists on classic dishes. Celebrate Black History Month with a recipe from one of these African American cookbooks.
Compiled by:
Elizabeth G.
641.56362 Ter
Renowned chef and food justice activist Bryant Terry reworks and remixes the favorite staples, ingredients, and classic dishes of the African Diaspora. With more than 100 modern and delicious dishes that draw on Terry’s personal memories as well as the history of food that has traveled from the African continent, Afro-Vegan takes you on an international food journey. Accompanying the recipes are Terry’s insights about building community around food.
641.815 Guy
For Jerrelle Guy, food has always been what has shaped her―her body, her character, her experiences, and her palate. Each one of her recipes tells a story. Jerrelle leads you on a sensual baking journey using the five senses, retelling and reinventing food memories while using ingredients that make her feel more in control and more connected to the world and the person she has become.
641.5929 Twi
A renowned culinary historian offers a fresh perspective on our most divisive cultural issue, race, in this illuminating memoir of Southern cuisine and food culture that traces his ancestry—both Black and white—through food, from Africa to America and slavery to freedom. Twitty tells his family story through the foods that enabled his ancestors’ survival across three centuries.
641.5929 Gra
The first book from the Bronx-based culinary collective, Ghetto Gastro is part cookbook, part manifesto. Black Power Kitchen combines 75 flavorful recipes with immersive storytelling, diverse voices, and striking images. This book celebrates Black food and culture, inspiring larger conversations about race, history, food inequality, and how eating well can be a pathway to personal freedom and self-empowerment.
641.5929 Har
Jessica B. Harris has spent much of her life researching the food and foodways of the African Diaspora. High on the Hog is the culmination of years of her work, taking the reader on a harrowing journey from Africa across the Atlantic to America, tracking the trials that the people and the food have undergone along the way. Harris celebrates the delicious and restorative foods of the African American experience and details how each came to form such an important part of African American culture, history, and identity.
641.59296 Tip
Author Toni Tipton-Martin focuses on the history of African American cuisine. In Jubilee, she brings these masters into our kitchens. Through recipes and stories, we cook along with pioneering figures, from enslaved chefs to middle- and upper-class writers and entrepreneurs. With more than 100 recipes, Jubilee presents techniques, ingredients, and dishes that show the roots of African American cooking—deeply beautiful, culturally diverse, fit for celebration.
641.59296 Sam
Chef, author, and television star Marcus Samuelsson gathers together an unforgettable feast of food, culture, and history to highlight the diverse deliciousness of Black cooking today. Driven by a desire to fight against bias, reclaim Black culinary traditions, and energize a new generation of cooks, Marcus shares his own journey alongside 150 recipes in honor of dozens of top chefs, writers, and activists—with stories exploring their creativity and influence.
641.59296 Luk
The National Museum of African American History and Culture’s Sweet Home Café has become a destination in its own right. Showcasing African American contributions to American cuisine, the café offers favorite dishes made with locally sourced ingredients, adding modern flavors and contemporary twists on classics. Now, home cooks can partake of the café's bounty; drawing upon traditions of family and fellowship strengthened by shared meals, Sweet Home Café Cookbook celebrates African American cooking through recipes served by the café itself and dishes inspired by foods from African American culture.
641.5975 Lew
In this classic Southern cookbook, the “first lady of Southern cooking,” declared by NPR, shares seasonal recipes from her childhood spent in a small farming community settled by freed slaves. She shows us how to recreate these timeless dishes in our own kitchens—using natural ingredients, embracing the seasons, and cultivating community. With menus for the four seasons, Miss Lewis—as she was almost universally known—shares the ways her family prepared and enjoyed food, savoring the delights of each special time of year.
641.5929 Tay
All-day cook-outs with tasty salads, dessert spreads, and raised glasses of “red drink” are essential to Juneteenth gatherings. In Watermelon and Red Birds, Taylor puts celebration on the main stage. As a master storyteller and cook, she bridges the traditional African American table and 21st century flavors in stories and recipes. Taylor also provides a resource to guide readers to BIPOC-owned hot sauces, jams, spice, and waffle mixes companies, and lists fun gadgets to make your Juneteenth special.
641.5975 Bro
“Gullah” and “GeeChee” refer to a group of African Americans living in the coastal areas of South Carolina and Georgia who preserve their West African culture. Kardea Brown shares her multi-generational “passed down” recipes and innovative takes on Gullah classics. These recipes combine West African herbs, spices, and grains with traditional Southern cooking to create 125 original dishes.