Kahja interviews Kiano Moju
On the heels of a successful career as a recipe developer, food writer, and producer/director, Kiano Moju is adding author to that list with the release of her new cookbook, "AfriCali: Recipes From My Jikoni." Drawing from her layered African heritage as well as her upbringing in Northern California, Kiano is welcoming us into her jikoni (which means "kitchen" in Swahili) through a vibrant collection of recipes taking us from savory to sweet, with flavor profiles that are both simple and complex, honoring the spirit of regionally adaptive foodways.
This week, Kahja and Kiano talk about the distinctions in the food cultures of her Kenyan and Nigerian background, having her childhood culinary curiosity spurred on by public broadcasting, using what's available to you for adaptive cultural cooking, the multi-step process of actually publishing a cookbook, and the importance of creating a historic archive to preserve tradition.
Recorded in Oakland, CA.
AfriCali: Recipes From My Jikoni
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