How Chef and Cookbook Author Zoe Adjonyoh is Changing the Narrative Around West African Cuisine

While she always had a passion for cooking, Zoe Adjonyoh’s initial experiments in selling West African cuisine were a simple means of making ends meet. In the process, however, she learned that there were many misconceptions about this type of cooking, and she had an opportunity to use her food as an ambassador that could change perceptions. Throughout the first two years of this burgeoning dining initiative, Adjonyoh faced countless stereotypes and misconceptions when it came to her ancestral roots and the cuisine borne from it. “For starters, many people thought that Ghanaian food would be unhealthy, greasy, and meat-heavy,” she recalls. “Others were surprised to learn that Africa was a continent rather than a country—not to mention that each geographical region, country, and even regions within each country employed different spices and ingredients to make their own unique dishes.”

SOURCE: WELL + GOOD