Episode 135: Soul Food and Black Smoke Storytelling with Adrian Miller

Greetings Glocal Citizens! This week's conversation is a great complement to a favorite summer past-time and what many consider delicacy--Barbecue. My guest is fellow Coloradan and Stanford Alum, Adrian Miller - The Soul Food Scholar. He is an award winning food writer, attorney, and certified barbecue judge. Two of his books, his first in 2014, Soul Food: The Surprising Story of an American Cuisine, One Plate at a Time and most recent in 2022, Black Smoke: African Americans and the United States of Barbecue are the James Beard Foundation Award for Reference, History, and Scholarship winners. His second book, The President’s Kitchen Cabinet: The Story of the African Americans Who Have Fed Our First Families, From the Washingtons to the Obamas was a finalist for a 2018 NAACP Image Award for “Outstanding Literary Work – Non-Fiction.” He is also featured in the Netflix hit docu-series, "High on the Hog: How African American Cuisine Transformed America." He is currently the executive director of the Colorado Council of Churches and, as such, is the first African American, and the first layperson, to hold that position. As well, he is the co-project director and lead curator for the forthcoming “Proclaiming Colorado’s Black History” exhibit at the Museum of Boulder.  In addition to fascinating anecdotes about foods common on three sides of the Atlantic Ocean, you'll get a sense of how this lawyer by training found himself on a career path in service not only to his dreams, but to the uncovering, elevation and preservation of narratives about culture defining foods and food practices. Where to find Adrian? www.adrianemiller.com On LinkedIn On Twitter On Instagram On Facebook What's Adrian watching? Star Trek Law and Order Other topics of interest: One America Initiative John Egerton's Soul Food Cookbook Southern Foodways Alliance Red Drinks in Black Culture Edna Lewis Ultimate Braai Master Kebab, Suya, Shawarma, Yakatori, Asada Special Guest: Adrian Miller.