Nigerian-American chef Kwame Onwuachi is publishing his first official cookbook. It is titled My America: Recipes from a Young Black Chef and will be published on May 3, 2022 by Knopf. 

Onwuachi has been recognized by Food & Wine magazine, Esquire magazine, and the James Beard Foundation as “Rising Star Chef of the year.” He was also a contestant on Top Chef (season 13) in 2015. His memoir, Notes from a Young Black Chef, gained significant attention in culinary and literary worlds and was featured on Brittle Paper‘s 50 Notable Books of 2019. The book chronicles his journey from cleaning up kitchens to winning America’s top culinary awards.

My America contains 125 recipes, through which Owuachi honors his global black heritage, which spans Nigeria, the Caribbean, and the US. The catalogue of recipes include everything from Nigerian Jollof rice to Baby Back Ribs. Professional and novice cooks interested in the ever changing definition of what’s considered today as black Diaspora cuisine will enjoy the cookbook.

The book is not just recipes. Onwuachi peppers the books with stories about his encounters with different places, cuisines, and people. Throughout the book, food and stories meet in ways that illuminate Onwuachi’s fascinating life as a chef.

Read the publishers description.

What is American food? In his first cookbook, Kwame Onwuachi (“the most important chef in America” —San Francisco Chronicle), the acclaimed author of Notes from a Young Black Chef, shares the dishes of his America; dishes that show the true diversity of American food.

Featuring more than 125 recipes, My America is a celebration of the food of the African Diaspora, as handed down through Onwuachi’s own family history, spanning Nigeria to the Caribbean, the South to the Bronx, and beyond. From Nigerian Jollof, Puerto Rican Red Bean Sofrito, and Trinidadian Channa (Chickpea) Curry to Jambalaya, Baby Back Ribs, and Red Velvet Cake, these are global home recipes that represent the best of the patchwork that is American cuisine. Interwoven throughout the book are stories of Onwuachi’s travels, illuminating the connections between food and place, and food and culture. The result is a deeply personal tribute to the food of “a land that belongs to you and yours and to me and mine.”

Pre-Order My America: Recipes from a Young Black Chef: Amazon