Michael W. Twitty is aculinary historian and food writer from the Washington D.C. area. His 2017 book, “The Cooking Gene,” traced his ancestry through food from Africa to America and from slavery to freedom. It won the 2018 James Beard Award for best writing as well as book of the year, making him the first Black author so awarded. His most recent book, Koshersoul: The Faith and Food Journey of an African American Jew” (2022), won the National Jewish Book Award for book of the year. He is also the author of Rice (2021).
In addition to his award-winning books, his piece on visiting Ghana in Bon Appetit was included in Best Food Writing in 2019, among other accolades. Twitty blogs at Afroculinaria. com. He’s appeared on Bizarre Foods America with Andrew Zimmern, Many Rivers to Cross with Henry Louis Gates, Taste the Nation with Top Chef’s Padma Lakshmi, and Michelle Obama’s Waffles and Mochi show on Netflix. Free and open