ABOUT LERATO UMAH
Lerato Umah-Shaylor is the founder and chef at Lerato Foods and Naturals. She runs immersive supper clubs and culinary classes in London and writes about food for The Guardian in Nigeria. She was a TV chef for Good Morning Nigeria and producer for the show THE BITE.
ABOUT “Passion on a Plate”: African Food
Lerato Umah-Shaylor is passionate about celebrating African food traditions with the world. In her career as a food journalist, TV chef, and cookery school owner, she has championed African dishes and making them accessible to the audience. She discusses how she does this through the available kitchen equipment and adjusting the recipes.
Hear her thought processes behind different business decisions she’s made during her career. Everything has been done with the intention to celebrate and start discussions around Africa’s culinary tradition. Lerato celebrates food’s ability to nurture and create relationships with others.
Highlights of the episode:
- How people view the role of professional chef and cook (1:48)
- Her passion for sharing her love of food with others (6:14)
- About the perceived “bastardization” of African cuisine by non-African influencers (22:20)
- Why sharing information about African recipes is important to Lerato (24:33)
- When Lerato Umah-Shaylor decided cooking was her career; being inquisitive about food and cooking from a young age (27:25)
- Talking about her online cooking courses and making the pivot due to COVID-19 (41:08)
- Adjusting the preparation to make sense for different palates (58:02)
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