Chef Todd Richards pulls the thread of Afro foods across generations in his new cookbook Roots Heart Soul

Words by Stephanie Burnette

Chef Todd Richards says he found a piece of himself, and a piece of his family, while writing his second cookbook Roots Heart Soul, The Story, Celebration, and Recipes of Afro Cuisine in America. Recently published by Harper Collins, it’s the follow up to the acclaimed and best-selling Soul: A Chef’s Culinary Evolution in 150 Recipes.

“I find that all roads intersect in places where my ancestors walked, toiled and endured,” Richards says in the introduction. 

His mother’s family was from Kentucky and his father’s, Louisiana. A lineage that includes Swedish, Irish, German, Indigenous American, Nigerian, Beninese, Ghanaian, and Ivorian points to a conclusion that his African ancestors bore the children of their colonial enslavers from a host of New World places.

Celebrated food writer Adrian Miller calls Richards “the tour guide we want and need,” and it’s true. The chef explores Afro-shaped recipes throughout our culinary lexicon, ones from the Deep South, yes, but also plates with Latin, and Caribbean roots. And the book takes us to where these recipes traveled and morphed, found identity, and with whom.

Along the way, there are conversations with notable cooks and other esteemed friends, like the aforementioned Adrian Miller, and Danny Dominguez, and Zella Palmer. Roots Heart Soul is an engrossing take on food culture as we know it today. If there was ever a book that reads like a podcast, this may be it.   

The recipes are most often organized as full meals. Chicken Yassa with Crispy Rice and Dandelion Salad appears early in the book. It’s in Part I: The Middle Passage (1500-1865). It’s a French-influenced country meal of southern Senegal. Today, it’s a staple in Harlem restaurants, especially around 116th Street. The meal feels part African, part Latin, and seasonal with the addition of the spring green salad. 

Richards expresses the sentiment,f His recipe for Chicken Yassa is just one great example of this sentiment. 

The basis of Yassa starts with Sazón. Richard explains that though Sazón is most closely identified with Puerto Rican dishes, its spice blend is rooted in the Spice Roads; it became a hallmark of West African cooking. You can buy Sazón or make your own with a simple mortar and pestle. Its dry ingredients are easy enough: cumin, coriander, and annatto seeds along with garlic, onion, oregano, thyme, salt and pepper. 

The chicken is brined overnight. It’s then seasoned with the dry rub and marinated with a Dijon-herb mixture. It endures a sear on both sides and is baked until cooked through. A pan sauce is made, and the chicken returns to the skillet. The finished dish is topped with parsley and olives.

Crispy Rice starts with cooked rice cooled to room temperature. It is folded with yogurt, curry, and aromatics. The mixture is pressed into a hot greased oven-safe skillet and baked. This process mimics the results of live fire cooking, honoring ancestral methods and adding a frond to the completed meal that’s unmistakable. 

Caramelization is Key

Chef Todd Richards says that his kinfolk who cooked solely by fire understood the power of caramelization.

A Lesson from the Chef:

Caramelization is the complex breakdown of sugars and proteins that happens when their molecules meet high heat. Chicken Yassa and Crispy Rice are prime examples of how you can add layers of flavor by caramelizing in stages: browning the chicken skin, sweating the onions, and crisping the rice. Together they transform the fats and sugars into sweet, nutty notes that deepen the dish’s complexity and heighten the contrast between its crispy and soft textures.

“The world is only best when we share food with people we love; and even better with people we don’t know.” -Chef Todd Richards