Michael W. Twitty is a culinary historian and food writer living in Fredericksburg, Virginia. He blogs at Afroculinaria.com and has appeared on "Bizarre Foods America" with Andrew Zimmern, "Many Rivers to Cross" with Henry Louis Gates and most recently "Taste the Nation" with Top Chef’s Padma Lakshmi.

"The Cooking Gene," traces his ancestry through food from Africa to America and from slavery to freedom, a finalist for The Kirkus Prize and The Art of Eating Prize and a 3rd place winner of Barnes & Noble’s Discover New Writer’s Awards in Nonfiction.

"The Cooking Gene" won the 2018 James Beard Award for best writing as well as book of the year, making him the first Black author so awarded. His piece on visiting Ghana in Bon Appetit was included in Best Food Writing in 2019 and was nominated for a 2019 James Beard Award. His next book, “Rice,” a New York Times noted cookbook, became available through UNC Press in 2021.

"KosherSoul", his follow-up to "The Cooking Gene", was published in August 2022 through HarperCollins and received the 2022 National Jewish Book Award.

Food, Food & Wine, Food & Beverage, Food industry, Chef, Cooking, Jewish, Jewish Heritage, Judaism, Black Heritage, Black History Month, African-American Research, Race, Racism, Authors, Writer and editor, Blogging, American History, Historians & Biographers, James Beard Award, BLM Diversity & Inclusion, LGBTQ, LGBTQ Voices, Culture, History, Top Chef, Lifestyle, Restaurants & Dining, Body Image, Self-Image, Self-Esteem, Mental Health, Speaking Engagements, Social Justice, Social Activism, LGBTQ+ Pride Month, Social Sciences,