The Netflix food show everyone’s watching

Are you watching Netflix’s “High on the Hog” this weekend?

The limited series (which deserves to be unlimited) debuted on Wednesday and has stirred a lot of warranted media attention; it broke into Netflix’s Top 10 viewing list in its first two days.

Based on a book of the same name by Jessica B. Harris, the show’s four episodes illuminate the largely under-acknowledged Black contributions to America’s food culture. It begins in Benin, West Africa, with Harris and the show’s host, Stephen Satterfield, who then travels to America following the culinary trails Harris laid out in her work.

It’s moving, it’s enlightening, it’s salient.

I wrote about it, but I’ll include here an extended quote from a conversation I had with Satterfield. We were talking about why “High on the Hog” with its all-Black creative team was revelatory and — to use a word emphasized by Osayi Endolyn in her lyric essay on the series in the New York Times — overdue.

Here’s what he said:

“It really makes me emotional. It’s so much to hold, you know? What I hope people take away, through the sense of awe and curiosity from what they see on the show, is to bring that curiosity into their own lives as a means for investigation. What other stories are missing?

“I can’t even begin to speculate what the show’s impact will be, but I can tell you that had it not been for food media, I would not be here. The Food Network, Jacques [Pepin], Julia [Child], Martha Stewart: Consuming this kind of media was so formative that I decided as a teenager to dedicate the rest of my life to food. Now we have a whole generation of Black youth who are going to see this program. I know how high the stakes are.

“And this is why I’ve gone so hard for media in my career — why I founded Whetstone. It’s not just about the content. This is about power, because stories are central to power. People who don’t have power are written out of the story, which is why we could get all the way to 2021 and say, why haven’t we seen this story about macaroni and cheese told this way on television before?

“Because it took this long. Because we haven’t held the power to control the stories. So when people ask, why does it matter that there are Black directors, a Black showrunner, Black producers, a Black host, a Black cast? We have the opportunity for the first time to tell our own story in our care — not through an interpretation of a white director or producer. I think the results of that creative autonomy are so clear. To me it’s the primary difference between this show and any other in the food-travel genre. It’s rare and powerful.”

Bonus: Watching the show will make you very, very hungry.

The Los Angeles Times Food Bowl returns

Los Angeles Times Food Bowl returns in June with a series of events and celebrations (some will be in person; others will be virtual). Events include celebration meals at Phenakite and Guelaguetza; a panel on women in food led by Jenn Harris; and, in commemoration of Juneteenth, an exploration of Black foodways hosted by newly arrived Times reporter Donovan X. Ramsey.

Other stories

— In the spirit of pure service, Jenn Harris and I tried nine fast-food fried chicken sandwiches — with Jenn on camera and me slightly off.

— Jenn also went to Vegas to join a buffet line (yes, they’ve reopened).

— Brittny Mejia writes about the Avenue 26 night market that is flourishing in Lincoln Heights.

— At the cusp of summertime, Rebekah Peppler has some recommendations for freeze-ahead cocktails (hello, tequila Negroni).

Freezing batched cocktails ahead of time makes it easier to serve them up quickly.

(Shelby Moore / For The Times)