Food as Cultural Anchor -- Identity, Memory, and Resilience

Good Food · December 26, 2025 · Listen to Original Episode →

Original Title:

TL;DR

Violence and displacement can lead to the loss of cultural heritage, including culinary traditions, as seen with the disappearance of specific dishes and languages after historical conflicts.
The historical struggle for market access, particularly for tequila, demonstrates how infrastructure development like railroads and changing consumer tastes drove industry modernization and global expansion.
The formation of early "cartels" in the tequila industry, originating as cooperatives, highlights how businesses consolidated power and controlled markets to navigate economic and political instability.
The US institution of Prohibition inadvertently created a high-demand market for tequila, driving up its desirability and revenue for Mexican producers by making it a coveted, contraband item.
The preservation of cultural identity through food is a powerful motivator, with individuals fighting to maintain traditional recipes and cooking methods as a connection to heritage and community.
The meticulous process of affinage, or cheese maturation, underscores the complex interplay of environmental factors and human intervention in developing unique flavors and textures.
The concept of "sonmat," a natural intuition for cooking, emphasizes the deep cultural value placed on innate culinary talent and the transmission of skills across generations.

Deep Dive

The core insight of these "Good Food" interviews is that food is a profound cultural anchor, deeply intertwined with identity, memory, and resilience, especially in the face of conflict, displacement, and historical upheaval. These stories illustrate how culinary traditions not only preserve heritage but also serve as a vital connection to a lost homeland and a means of maintaining community cohesion, with their erosion often signaling a broader societal breakdown.

The interviews highlight several critical themes: Michael Shaikh's work reveals how war and violence directly threaten the existence of culinary traditions, as seen with the experiences of the Rohingya people. The loss of familiar ingredients and the inability to practice traditional farming or fishing isolate refugees and sever their connection to their culture, impacting intergenerational transmission of knowledge and weakening community bonds. This erosion of food culture can create societal vulnerabilities, leading to increased abuse and exploitation, as the communal structures supported by food distribution collapse. Similarly, the historic struggles of the Cuervo family, as detailed by Ted Genoways, demonstrate how food industries, particularly in the context of global markets and political instability, become deeply connected to national identity and economic survival. The US-Mexico border and the evolution of tequila production showcase how trade, politics, and technological advancement intertwine, with prohibition inadvertently creating a highly coveted market for Mexican spirits. Sarah Ahn's viral videos of her mother, "Umma," underscore the intimate and ordinary nature of culinary heritage within families, where cooking becomes a labor of love and a way to sustain family ties, even across vast distances and demanding careers. Finally, Olivia Haver's dedication to cheesemaking as an affineur illustrates the meticulous, almost parental care required to transform raw ingredients into complex, aged products, emphasizing that the development of unique flavors and textures is a direct result of careful attention and environmental control, mirroring the nurturing required for cultural traditions.

Ultimately, these narratives collectively demonstrate that food is far more than sustenance; it is a repository of history, a carrier of identity, and a powerful tool for maintaining human connection and cultural continuity against formidable odds. The preservation or loss of these culinary practices has tangible social, political, and personal consequences, revealing the deep systemic impact of food on human societies.

Action Items

Audit family language preservation: For 3-5 individuals, document reasons for language loss and potential methods for revitalization.
Create culinary tradition documentation guide: Define 5 key elements (ingredients, techniques, historical context, cultural significance, personal stories) for preserving endangered cuisines.
Analyze historical trade route impact: For 2-3 historical trade routes, map their influence on ingredient availability and recipe evolution.
Develop cheese aging best practices: For 3-5 cheese types, document critical environmental factors (humidity, temperature, airflow) for optimal maturation.
Track generational recipe transmission: For 2-3 family recipes, document the methods of transmission and any modifications over 3-4 generations.

Key Quotes

"You know, the theme for all these interviews, if I had to pick one, it's resilience. I hope you enjoy them as much as we did."

Evan Kleiman, the host, introduces the episode by highlighting resilience as a unifying theme across the diverse stories featured. This suggests that the podcast aims to explore how individuals and communities persevere through challenges, using food as a central element in their narratives.

"When everything else is left behind, food and culinary traditions can be the last remnants."

Michael Shaikh explains that in times of war and displacement, food and the traditions surrounding it become crucial anchors to identity and heritage. This quote underscores the profound cultural significance of food beyond mere sustenance, especially in the face of loss and destruction.

"The tequila that was being made over a century ago when Quervo first took over his family business would have been at that point transitioning over from in ground ovens that let impart the smoky flavor that we think of as typical of mezcal to using steam ovens that are typical of the tequila industry."

Ted Genoways describes the historical shift in tequila production, moving from traditional in-ground ovens to steam ovens. This detail illustrates a key technological and flavor evolution in the spirit's history, impacting its characteristic taste profile.

"I would say our relationship is it's very close and I always say the theme of honest kitchen is the richness in the ordinary and capturing those fleeting but intimate moments."

Sarah Ahn explains her approach to documenting her mother's cooking, emphasizing the value found in everyday moments and the deep connection between them. This highlights how ordinary activities, when captured with intimacy and respect, can reveal profound emotional depth.

"My number one chorizo the red Zacatecano red chorizo is made a lot with wajillo garlic vinegar and spices that makes it very spicy and smoky a lot of other sausages or chorizos are less spicy non spicy they use more wine just different flavor profiles from the regions where I'm from."

Humberto Raygoza, "The Chori-Man," differentiates his signature chorizo by detailing its key ingredients and flavor profile. This explanation provides insight into the specific regional influences and culinary techniques that define his product.

"On a very basic level it's the maturation of cheese so taking cheese from its newly fresh state that we call green cheese and maturing it in a cave environment that's which is where you grow the rind where flavors start to develop."

Olivia Haver defines the core practice of affinage, explaining it as the process of maturing cheese to develop its rind and flavor. This clarifies the role of an affineur as a caretaker of cheese during its critical development stages.

Resources

External Resources

Books

"The Last Sweet Bite: Stories and Recipes of Culinary Heritage Lost and Found" by Michael Shaikh - Mentioned as the author's book discussing how violence affects culture and cuisine.
"Tequila Wars: José Cuervo and the Bloody Struggle for the Spirit of Mexico" by Ted Genoways - Mentioned as the author's book detailing the history of the Cuervo family and the tequila industry.
"Umma: A Korean Mom's Kitchen Wisdom and 100 Family Recipes" by Sarah Ahn - Mentioned as the author's book featuring family recipes and kitchen wisdom from her mother.

Articles & Papers

"Aging Cellars Around the US" (Daphne Zepos Research Award) - Mentioned as the subject of study for affineur Olivia Haver using her grant money.

People

Michael Shaikh - Author of "The Last Sweet Bite," climate and human rights activist who has investigated war crimes.
Ted Genoways - Award-winning journalist and author of "Tequila Wars," discussing the history of José Cuervo and the tequila industry.
Sarah Ahn - Creator of "The Honest Kitchen" website and author of "Umma: A Korean Mom's Kitchen Wisdom and 100 Family Recipes," documenting her mother's cooking.
Humberto Regoza - Founder of "The Chorizo Man," a fourth-generation maker of artisan chorizo.
Olivia Haver - An East Coast affineur who won the 2025 Daphne Zepos Research Award to study aging cellars.
Evan Kleiman - Host of the podcast "Good Food."

Organizations & Institutions

Human Rights Watch - Mentioned as an organization Michael Shaikh worked for.
UN's Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights - Mentioned as an organization Michael Shaikh worked for.
KCRW - The radio station where the podcast "Good Food" airs.
Von Trapp Farmstead - The organic farmstead operation in Waitsfield, Vermont, where Olivia Haver works as an affineur.

Websites & Online Resources

The Chorizo Man - A shop in San Pedro specializing in artisan chorizo.
The Honest Kitchen - Website created by Sarah Ahn.
KCRW Good Food Substack - Mentioned as a place to connect with host Evan Kleiman.

Other Resources

Rohingya culture - Discussed in relation to the preservation of food traditions amidst displacement.
Rohingya food - Described as a cuisine that straddles South Asia and Southeast Asia, with fish curries, beef curries, and salads.
Goro Guso - A Rohingya beef curry dish mentioned as a way to reinforce societal and political relationships through distribution.
Sonmat - A Korean concept meaning "taste of the hands," referring to a natural talent or intuition for cooking.
Affinage - The process of cheese maturation, guided by an affineur.
Green cheese - The term for cheese in its newly fresh state before maturation.
Panchan - A Korean side dish.
Chilaquiles - A Mexican dish mentioned as a typical dinner.
Chiles rellenos - A Mexican dish mentioned as a typical dinner.
Arroz y frijoles - Mexican rice and beans, mentioned as a typical dinner.
Carnitas - Mexican slow-cooked meat, mentioned as a typical Saturday/Sunday meal.
Barbacoa - Mexican slow-cooked meat, mentioned as a typical Saturday/Sunday meal.
Birria - Mexican stew, mentioned as a typical Saturday/Sunday meal.
Menudo - Mexican soup, mentioned as a typical Saturday/Sunday meal.
Chorizo - A type of pork sausage, central to Umberto Regoza's business.
Soy chorizo - A vegan option for chorizo.
Tequila - The spirit discussed in "Tequila Wars."
Vino mezcal - The historical term for tequila.
Agave kingdom - Refers to the extensive cultivation of agave for tequila production.
Steam ovens - A modern method for cooking agave in tequila production.
Smoky flavor - A characteristic flavor of mezcal, often from in-ground ovens.
Korean cooking - The cuisine documented by Sarah Ahn and her mother.
Tequila Wars - The historical context of competition and cooperation in the tequila industry.
Mexican cartel - The origin and evolution of the term as a cooperative business model.
Prohibition - The period in the US that created a market for smuggled tequila.
Daphne Zepos Research Award - An award given to Olivia Haver to study aging cellars.
KCRW mobile app - Mentioned as a way to listen to "Good Food" and access other KCRW content.