Food Stories

Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal and others all claim the best jollof. Here is where the dish may have started.

A sauce of chilies, chocolate and spices, and a story about nuns, a bishop and a desperate cook.

From snow with fruit juice to Italian gelaterias, frozen sweets have a long and winding story.

Kimchi is more than a side dish. It is a shared tradition recognized by UNESCO.

Fried fish and fried potatoes met in Britain in the nineteenth century and never parted.

A dish named for a pockmarked old woman, numbing Sichuan pepper and a tale from the Qing dynasty.

Each saffron thread is hand-picked from a crocus flower, which is why a few threads cost so much.

Long before packet yeast, bakers used wild fermentation. Here is how sourdough has traveled through time.

The humble potato fed empires, and its failure in Ireland changed history.

The baguette is so French that UNESCO has recognized its craft. Yet the shape is more modern than many people think.