101 I Thought "Authentic" Was a GOOD Thing!? with Shayma Saadat

My guest for today is Shayma Saadat, an internationally published food writer, food photographer, teacher and public speaker. Shayma specializes in Silk Road Cuisine, her chosen name for a style of cooking that incorporates her Afghan, Pakistani, and Persian heritage. Just this past July, Shayma presented a paper at The Oxford Symposium on Food titled “Food Reimagined: Diasporic Identity and Authenticity” Her paper discusses the role of food in nostalgia and also - super interestingly to me - the concept of “authenticity”, especially in Eastern cuisines, and why that can be a problematic and limiting word used to label foods. While Shayma is a scholar, a writer, and an academic, she is also a truly wonderful guest who talks about this topic of authenticity, food, and nostalgia from a very deeply personal perspective. I can’t wait for you to hear this episode - and to try Shayma’s truly perfect Chana Masala with just one secret surprise ingredient inspired by her own travels and memories.

Highlights

What is the diaspora?
Food as identity for members of the diaspora
3 points to her paper - 1) food, nostalgia, identity and 2) ?? 6:50 3) how those in the diaspora are re-imagining and
Is authenticity and inauthenticity in food a false binary? is there a grey area?
Why is it harmful to label Eastern food as authentic or inauthentic?
Who is doing the labeling?
The constant push and pull between old and new generations, the static and the dynamic
How to approach changing a recipe from another culture
Traditional vs. authentic
"Made in Pakistan, assembled abroad"
Shayma's path from
A Pakistani and Persian heritage then her path from Pakistan to Washington DC to Nigeria, Kenya, Pakistan, UK, Massachusetts, Rome to Canada
A love story that brought Shayma's great-great-grandfather from Iran to Pakistan, and how Shayma learned this story
The similarities and differences between Afghani, Pakistani, Punjabi, and Persian foods
Rice as The Queen of Dishes
Cooking, authenticity, legacies, and the cycle of life
"I don't have a sweet tooth; I have a carb tooth" 🙂
Using the water in the cans with the beans
The sentimental reason Shayma uses Aleppo pepper in her Chana Masala
How did Shayma build a career in food while working as an Economist and become a full-time member of the food community
Why being a food blogger is Shayma's biggest honor
"We don't always want to talk about the trauma and loss. I want to talk about the beauty of that world and I want to talk about my heritage."