Portside

For some black families, chitlins are essential. For a younger generation, the polarizing dish is a dirty trick.

Adrian Miller is a food writer, James Beard Award winner, attorney, and certified barbecue judge. His third book, discussed here, is Black Smoke: African Americans and the United States of Barbecue.

Adrian Miller is a food writer, James Beard Award winner, attorney, and certified barbecue judge. His third book, discussed here, is third book, Black Smoke: African Americans and the United States of Barbecue.

I continue to seek healing in the kitchen, the way I recover from the churning news cycle of sickness and police violence.

The flourishing of soul food’s sub-genres has been fun to watch (and eat), but it has also meant that fewer African-American chefs are embracing traditional soul food. Some side-step the cuisine in order to avoid being pigeon-holed as a “soul-food cooks,” while others follow their passions for other flavors.