Outside the Kitchen C culture to those who have not yet ventured outside their cultural bubble. hef Kavachi also runs Grubido, a consulting organization and foundation that is focused on promoting West African food
Fufu. They are curated around Nigerian culture. In these events, Iraditions and culture are displayed—not just visually but also sensorily. Guests can smell the soups and mix and match to see which soup and fufu pairs they like. One of the things Chef Kavachi noticed during these events was that the different Nigerian tribespeople, like
Nigerian comfort food. Due to its filling and nutrient-rich nature, it is often the food that children eat when they do not feel like eating. Paired with an array of soups, each tribe adds its unique touch, creating a symphony of flavors that tantalize the taste buds and nourishes the soul. Chef Kavachi even went as far as saying that, if her personality were a dish, the main ingredient would definitely be fufu which comes with a flavorful, 15-ingredient soup. “You gotta season the meat. You gotta prep it. You gotta let it marinate, and then you gotta start chopping up the vegetables. You gotta start putting some oil to it,” she says excitedly. “So, it's like my life is so flavorful with different ingredients!” Texan–Nigerian Connection C hef Kavachi’s cooking style is influenced by American, especially Texan, ingredients and palates. She uses Texan methods , with Nigerian spices to season the dishes. She also embraces the local traditions of big servings of delicious food with lots of flavor and heat. Chef Kavachi often uses similar cultural touchpoints to explain the food to people from other cultures. Her spicy red rice shares some similarities with Mexican and Spanish red rice. Even though there are different nuances, these similarities act as a good starting point to attract customers from different backgrounds. She explained that if someone, wants to dip their toes into her Texas-influenced “Tex-Naija” food, she would ask if they are a visual eater or a texture eater. From there, she can better cater to their preferences. For example, a visual eater who likes greens would probably like vegetable soup. Or a peanut soup would suit someone who likes savoriness. She has different tools in her arsenal to build cultural bridges for people from all walks of life. In addition to the aforementioned cookbook, she also runs a series of art shows that are also—not coincidentally—called Art of
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is a product line for The Art of Fufu, which would offer her customers access to the cookbook as well as the ingredients needed to start making various soups in their homes. Her second launch is the new Grubido website, Grubido.com, which should be up in late December. Last are her new popsicle line, which will be on the market soon, and the work needed for the upcoming Art of Fufu show. As the interview drew to a close, the oppressive Houston heat caused Chef Kavachi’s cell phone to malfunction. After a successful reconnection, she elaborated more about her passions and visions. One cannot help but feel that her enthusiasm and tenacity—also shown when she fought through the problematic reception to her culture’s cuisine—will bring Nigerian food and culture to new heights!
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Hausa, Yoruba, and Igbo, to name a few, usually stick to their own food. Due to the geographic divide, they have little exposure to one another’s dishes back home. But as they are now all grouped as “Nigerians” in the United States, they tend to be more united. On occasions such as these, they could try out what the other tribes eat in a judgment-free manner. In addition, she promotes and participates enthusiastically in the National Fufu Day on August 11. This is something that reaches outside the Nigerian community and closes the cultural gap with the general public.
Her goal right now is to make Grubido an online resource and a hub for news and education for people who want to know more about African food in general. To that end, the organization is working with the State of Texas to get clarity on various Nigerian products and their import procedure. Currently, when Nigerian ingredients arrive at the border, the state authorities do not have the requisite knowledge to identify what they are. This makes the importation process very difficult. The hope is that, once the work is done, everything will be much smoother and imports can happen the right way. Meanwhile, Chef Kavachi is in the midst of several new ventures. First
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