148: Masala, Maíz, and Movement - Ingredients for Decolonizing Plates with Norma Listman and Saqib Keval
AnthroDish1 Apr 2025

148: Masala, Maíz, and Movement - Ingredients for Decolonizing Plates with Norma Listman and Saqib Keval

On the show today are Norma Listman and Saqib Keval, looking at the solutions and communities that can be built when activism and ethical values are at the forefront of food creation. Norma and Saqib are the chefs and restauranteurs behind Masala y Maíz, which TIME Magazine named as one of the top destinations to visit worldwide, and its slightly more casual Indian-Mexican sister restaurant, Mari Gold. Norma and Saqib were also just featured in the most recent season of Chef's Table on Netflix.

Masala y Maíz seamlessly blends Indian, East African, and Mexican flavours inspired by the cultures of the husband-wife team. In addition to being renowned globally for its genre-bending and deeply personal cuisine, Masala y Maíz champions a movement of social justice through food, prioritizing quality of life for their staff and farmers and serving as a testament to the idea that a values-based workplace can also be a thriving workplace.

In today's conversation, Norma and Saqib share how they moved the idea of Masala y Maíz from a research concept into a full restaurant, even after not being so sure about staying in the industry for all its shortcomings), how experiences with local flavours on a menu can fuck with your brain and decolonize how you think about ingredients, and the importance of corn in cultural, social, and decolonial approaches to food.

Resources:

Episoder(182)

167: Rethinking Cultural Food Security in UK School Systems with Sarah Oresnik

167: Rethinking Cultural Food Security in UK School Systems with Sarah Oresnik

My guest today, Sarah Oresnik, is a PhD candidate in the Department of Anthropology at McMaster University. Their research interests centre around food insecurity and its impact on our health and well...

3 Feb 38min

166: How Daily Bread is Tackling Toronto's Food Insecurity Crisis with Mike Greenberg

166: How Daily Bread is Tackling Toronto's Food Insecurity Crisis with Mike Greenberg

Here in Canada, we have a food security crisis—and a cost-of-living crisis. While there are many, many factors that are shaping this continued issue across the country, one of the challenges of naviga...

27 Jan 29min

165: Terroir, Taste, and Wine Pairing for the People with Cha McCoy

165: Terroir, Taste, and Wine Pairing for the People with Cha McCoy

To kickstart the second half of AnthroDish season 10, we're shifting to a topic I generally feel very intimidated by: wine. But, as my guest Cha McCoy reveals this week, there is a lot to unearth in m...

20 Jan 50min

164: Embracing Seasonality in Edomae-Style Sushi with Chef Cheng Lin

164: Embracing Seasonality in Edomae-Style Sushi with Chef Cheng Lin

Edomae sushi is an Edo style of sushi making that underscores marinating, curing, and aging techniques. Within that, there is one chef, Cheng Lin, standing out for his attention not only to these tech...

16 Des 202528min

163: How Community Supported Fisheries Promote Sustainable Seafood with Sonia Strobel

163: How Community Supported Fisheries Promote Sustainable Seafood with Sonia Strobel

My guest today, Sonia Strobel, is here to explore the idea of community-supported fisheries. Sonia is co-founder and CEO of Skipper Otto, a Community Supported Fishery based in Vancouver, BC, Canada. ...

9 Des 202532min

162: Behind the Rise of Non-Alcoholic Drinks with Ren Navarro

162: Behind the Rise of Non-Alcoholic Drinks with Ren Navarro

Why are we seeing such a boom in non-alcoholic drink options, and how do they stand out from wellness beverages as their own specific category?  I invited my dear friend Ren Navarro back to AnthroDish...

2 Des 202542min

161: Are Our Fridges Designed for Food Waste? with Emma Atkins

161: Are Our Fridges Designed for Food Waste? with Emma Atkins

My guest this week, Emma Atkins, is here to explore the role that refrigeration has played in our food waste. Emma is a PhD researcher at the University of Bristol in the UK. Her research looks at how...

25 Nov 202531min

160: Exploring Nigerian Culinary Histories through Recipes with Ozoz Sokoh

160: Exploring Nigerian Culinary Histories through Recipes with Ozoz Sokoh

In Nigeria, the word chop is used for food and feasting, and to say "come chop" is an invitation into sharing and community. This is precisely how Ozoz Sokoh's debut cookbook, Chop Chop: Cooking the F...

18 Nov 202542min

Populært innen Samfunn

rss-spartsklubben
giver-og-gjengen-vg
aftenpodden
konspirasjonspodden
aftenpodden-usa
lydartikler-fra-aftenposten
popradet
rss-nesten-hele-uka-med-lepperod
rss-henlagt-andy-larsgaard
alt-fortalt
grenselos
wolfgang-wee-uncut
synnve-og-vanessa
min-barneoppdragelse
krisemoter
fladseth
rss-dette-ma-aldri-skje-igjen
frokostshowet-pa-p5
198-land-med-einar-trnquist
den-politiske-situasjonen