On Black Women’s Day, meet 7 Brazilian chefs – 07/25/2023 – Food

The skill of black women in the kitchen is ancestral. For years, it was by preparing and selling delicacies that they conquered their own freedom and that of other enslaved people. Today, through the appreciation of Afro-Brazilian gastronomy, they use this skill to undertake and run their own restaurants.

A group of black female chefs have been changing the gastronomic scene in Brazil and bring ancestry and Afrofuturism to the kitchen. On Latin American and Caribbean Black Women’s Day, see some of them to follow.

Aline Chermoula

In addition to being a chef, she is a writer, teacher, researcher of Afro-diasporic ancestral cuisine and owner of Chermoula Cultura Culinária. The last name adopted by the baiana refers to a versatile seasoning used in North Africa that uses fresh herbs such as coriander, mint, seasonings and spices in its composition. She is also the creator of the Xepa no Prato project and gives lectures on ancestral food and self-care.

Aline Guedes

She was one of the participants in the third season of Mestre do Sabor, on TV Globo. Her story in the kitchen began in childhood. From the outskirts of São Paulo, Aline had her mother, Benedita, as her greatest influence. The matriarch worked as a cook in a family home for 25 years. The chef is also specialized in eating habits of quilombos in the state of São Paulo. Today she continues as a professor of the gastronomy course at Universidade Anhembi Morumbi.

Carmen Virginia

From the acarajé on the doorstep to a successful restaurant in the central area of ​​Recife, she is yet another example of a black woman who rose through entrepreneurship. During the pandemic, the chef ventured into social media to teach her audience healthy and simple dishes. The spontaneous media was responsible for raising funds and preventing the bankruptcy of the Altar Cozinha Ancestral restaurant. Carmem landed in Vila Madalena, in São Paulo, in 2023. Her second restaurant, also called Altar, is a partnership with singer Luísa Sonza and businesswoman Fátima Pissara.

Cidinha Santiago

Born in Minas Gerais, Cidinha studied nursing in the 1980s, but later realized what she really liked was cooking. In 1985, he released his book “Receitas de Comidas Típicas” and moved to São Paulo, where he is to this day. Specializing in phytotherapy, she teaches classes and provides consultancy for restaurants. In 2017, she was honored with the title of honorary member of the FIC, the Italian Federation of Chefs. In 2021, she received the Dolmã National Award.

Ieda de Matos

His history with gastronomy began in childhood, when he accompanied his mother, father, grandmother and aunts in the kitchen. They used simple utensils and harvested ingredients and seasonings straight from the backyard, habits that marked the chef’s memory. Coming from Bahia, Ieda arrived in São Paulo with an aunt who adopted her and, in the capital of São Paulo, she worked in several other professions until she decided to fulfill her old dream of living among cooking pots. She became professional, did internships in Belgium and, when she returned to Brazil, she decided to invest in street food. She gave life to Bocapiu, specializing in northeastern recipes, for three years. Then she opened Casa de Ieda, to serve flavors from her homeland, Chapada Diamantina.

Naiara Faria

From an early age, the girl from Minas Gerais already went backstage at Vecchio Sogno, her father’s restaurant, chef Ivo Faria. With 14 years of experience, Naiara, still at the beginning of her career, interned at two restaurants in France. One with one Michelin star, Lou Fassum, and the other with two, Le Meurin. The chef now runs the kitchen at La Palma, in São Paulo, a restaurant with 10 years of history in Italian cuisine, with homemade pastas and breads.

Patty Durães

Graduated in international relations, Patty Durães left the corporate world to be a food culture researcher, focusing on food production in traditional quilombola communities. As a producer of gastronomic events, she has been creating meetings in which food is the protagonist for years. As a communicator, she also acts as a mediator and master of ceremonies at institutional events. She participated in TED and is the author of the course Far beyond the mouth: a transatlantic tour of Afro-diasporic food in Brazil.