“Every culture has its own version of soul food.” Chef Deborah VanTrece learned this lesson first-hand in her global travels and made it part of her own cooking philosophy. VanTrece says she believes that soul food, wherever it’s from, is really about welcoming visitors to the table.
VanTrece is the chef and owner of Twisted Soul Cookhouse & Pours, as well as the catering company Catering by VanTrece. By her own admission, her current role counts as the fifth or sixth act in a career that includes being a model, a student, a flight attendant and, increasingly, a vocal advocate for social justice.
During her years working as a flight attendant in the late 1980s and early 1990s, VanTrece learned to appreciate many flavors after tasting them in their lands of origin.
“I just loved visiting markets in these new places and buying ingredients I hadn’t ever used before,” VanTrece says. “Then, when you get the opportunity to be invited into someone’s home, and you see the way they cook … that’s their kind of soul food.”
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*Note: the photos on this page were taken by Henri Hollis. The photos accompanying this article in Living Intown were taken by Jenni Girtman.
