Whetstone Media

26/06/2024

Israel Meléndez Ayala, historian and writer from Puerto Rico, takes on the history of to***co in the Caribbean island for Vol. 12 of Whetstone Magazine. The tropical archipelago contains rich history related to the crop, especially when viewed through the lens of feminist history—both societal and personal.

“My right arm is covered in a sleeve of tattoos dedicated to Puerto Rico. Included among the sugarcane, rum barrels and flamboyant flowers is a to***co leaf…The to***co in particular is in honor of my great-grandmother, Clara Molina, who made and smoked her own ci**rs at her home in Arecibo.”

Learn more about the feminist history of to***co in “To***co’s Story Unfolds” as presented by Whetstone Magazine, Vol. 12.

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***co

05/06/2024

Beef ribs with burnt honey pistachio and almond dukkah. Muhammara with pomegranate molasses. Lamb shoulder kabob with spicy tahina. Lemon grapefruit juice with cardamom.

Atlanta is rightfully synonymous with some of the world’s best fried chicken, with biscuits worth traveling for. But a visit to the city isn’t complete without Chef Fares Kargar’s marvelous Delbar , offering up Middle Eastern deliciousness in the form of freshly sourced, beautifully plated cuisine from his native Iran. 

Whetstone’s own Stephen Satterfield pulls up a chair with Chef Kargar to learn more about his journey from Iran to his first restaurant gig—a busboy at an Italian restaurant—and the eventual launch of the revered Delbar. 

“The main ingredient I cook with is called zereshk. They’re dried berries from the drier areas of Iran. They also come from different countries, but mainly from Iran. It’s something I grew up eating as a kid and harvesting with my grandma.”

Read on in Corner Table to learn about Chef Kargar’s special lamb neck dish, the meaning of “Delbar” and his favorite cooking music.

Must be 21 years of age or older to consume alcoholic beverages. Please drink responsibly.

Writing: Stephen Satterfield
Editors: Gabrielle Pharms and Allison Robicelli
Photographer: Madelynne Ross
Creative Director: Celine Glasier
Brand Partnership: Marisa Dobson

03/06/2024

Nairobi-based journalist and photographer Kang-Chun Cheng examines how the wheat flour
industry took hold and flourished in Taiwan after World War II, including the influx of American aid and waves of immigrants from mainland China.

“Here in the north, you can find some of the best noodles, dumplings, and breads in China––hearty foods essential to surviving long, harsh winters…In sharp contrast, my Ye Ye came from Cantonese Guangzhou, where the food is light, sharp, crisp, known to lean on the sweet side: shao rou (braised meats), char siu, and steamed fish.”

Spend time with “The memory threads behind Taiwan’s wheaten cuisine” in Vol. 12 of Whetstone Magazine.

Photography: Kang-Chun Cheng

30/05/2024

In this week’s episode, Stephen chats with art historian, author and educator Shana Klein about politically charged fruit, what bananas have to do with coups and clothing stores, and her latest book The Fruits Of Empire: Art, Food, And The Politics of Race In The Age Of American Expansion.

Sharing her meticulous research, while examining traditional art history and empires (by highlighting overlooked perspectives from the margins), Shan helps shed light on the deeper interpretations and symbolisms in something as innocuous as a bowl of fruit in an oil painting.

Shana Klein is an award-winning assistant professor at Kent State University. Her research and expertise range from American visual and material culture and food studies to race, social justice, and postcolonial studies.

Listen to the full episode wherever you get your podcast!

Produced by Whetstone Radio Collective

28/05/2024

Dominican immigrant and agriculture policy advocate Vanessa Garcia Polanco takes on mangú and race in the D.R. Writing for Whetstone Magazine’s, Polanco examines why mangú holds historic sway in confronting the island nation’s colonial past.

“Curiously, mangú’s main ingredient, green plantain, is the same fruit that connects us more strongly to our African heritage, plantain being a common staple across Western African cuisines today and having made its way to the Americans to feed the enslaved people from African brought over to the island during the colonial times.”

Read “Plátanos and Politics” in Vol. 12 of Whetstone Magazine.

Illustration: Lena Tokens

23/05/2024

The HONE Narrative Workshop has arrived! An 8-week series presented by HONE and featuring members of the Whetstone Media editorial team, this series of virtual workshops is intended to guide entrepreneurs, influencers, creatives, academics and others through brand narrative development.

As an editorial team, we’ve seen thousands of stories cross our desk over the last 7 years, and we’re excited to share some of that expertise in a way that is generative for our community.  

Curious? Here are the particulars:
* 8 virtual workshops over the course of 8 weeks with 9 instructors
* Led by Stephen Satterfield and other guest lecturers w. limited capacity
* Case studies, digital distribution and personal brand strategy
* $3,500 | 24-hour only discount codes | payment plans available

Define and chronicle your core beliefs and own your story and put it to work!

You’ll leave the workshop with lots of new assets and a roadmap for moving forward.

Registration is limited, so consider reaching out soon. More information in the coming days.

Email us at [email protected]  * We’re here to help you shine*

15/05/2024

The Stephen Satterfield Show is back! And to welcome us back from hiatus, joining Stephen in conversation, is Co-Executive Director for the Black Farmer Fund (BFF) Melanie Allen. The BFF is a community-led organization that helps fund and facilitate capital and networking opportunities for Black farmers, land stewards, herbalists, and other food actors.

Stephen and Melanie chat about the astonishing work that the BFF has already achieved in its short time on the scene, while sharing in the joy of witnessing the growing numbers of black agrarians.

Find the full episode at the link in bio or whenever you enjoy podcasts.

Produced by Whetstone Radio Collective
Image design: Bethany Knapp



Image design:

13/05/2024

Golden crusted sourdough with a touch of rye, “flecked with poppy and caraway seeds.” UK-based television journalist Felicity Spector reports from Ukraine for Vol. 12 of Whetstone Magazine, tracking the role of homemade sourdough bread as both resistance and sustenance.

“Bread, especially the iconic Ukrainian loaf known as palyanytsya is incredibly meaningful in a nation that feeds much of the world with its wheat. Driving through the countryside in the height of midsummer, we passed hundreds of miles of farmland, fields of corn and wheat and sunflowers, the landscape mirroring the blue and yellow flag of Ukraine.”

Check out “In Bread, Sanctuary” in Vol. 12 of Whetstone Magazine, by Felicity Spector.

Photography: Felicity Spector

08/05/2024

Gulf shrimp with tamarind sauce, red pepper coulis, or toasty fonio. Savory soupa konja, made lovingly with puffed rice, crab and okra. Cornmeal-crusted flounder. Palm bread. Tea service.

Though the particulars ebb and flow like the nearby Mississippi River, Chef Serigne Mbaye’s 7-course pescatarian sampling menu is a serious showstopper, bridging cuisines from his native Dakar, Senegal, and New Orleans. Guests who gather at community tables West African style to partake in the feast are lucky indeed.

Chef Mbaye designed Dakar NOLA as a valentine to two beloved (and coastal) cities: New Orleans and his native Dakar, Senegal. Traditional Sengalese spices and techniques may permeate every delicious mouthful, but the vibe is saturated with the heart and soul of New
Orleans.

For ’s Corner Table, Whetstone sits down with Chef Mbaye and managing director/co-owner, Dr. Afua “Effie” Richardson for a taste of Dakar NOLA’s story.

“I want people to leave our restaurant and feel like they learned that West African cuisine also matters. They learn that we have something to offer.” — Chef Mbaye
Must be 21 years of age or older to consume alcoholic beverages. Please drink responsibly.

Writing: Stephen Satterfield
Editors: Gabrielle Pharms and Allison Robicelli
Photographer: Kat Kimball
Creative Director: Celine Glasier

06/05/2024

Writing for Whetstone Magazine, Jessica Hernandez heads to a secluded highland town on the fringe of Ilocos Norte, part of the Philippine archipelago, to better learn the history and source of tapuey: umami-rich native rice wine with hints of tamarind candy.

“More than tapuey itself, I have always been curious about the starter culture, which is shrouded in a bit of mystery partly due to its elusive makers. Bubod is unique to the Philippines, just as koji is to Japan and nuruk is to Korea.”

Read “Tapuey: A Philippine Brew with Many Names,” available in Vol. 12 of Whetstone Magazine.

Photography: Jessica Hernandez

29/04/2024

Under construction and now into the world, say hello to Whetstone Magazine, Volume 12! It has been over a year in the making and we were not sure that we would make it, so this addition certainly is worth celebrating. Twelve is a celestial number—a dozen, a base, a year. Inches to feet symmetry.

Shoutout to the gang—the same editorial team that has earned Whetstone all of its acclaim— Layla Schlack, Alex Bowman and Lyric Lewin, editor, art director and photo directors.

“This issue spans the globe, from Polish cheesemakers, to the Chinese workers who brought tea to Iran, to the complicated symbolism of plátanos in the Dominican Republic. It also looks at how food and crops travel, from wheat to sourdough,” says Layla.

Our existence and survival has always been contingent on your support. It is a pleasure to still be making magazines and it could not happen with you. Thank you. History has many mothers and is being remade everyday. We are here to bear witness.

Volume 12 is available for pre-order on our website and in the link-in-bio!

07/03/2024

In Sri Lanka, milk powder is not just a commodity — it brings people together for the social ritual of teatime. The country’s current economic crisis has made this everyday ingredient inaccessible. A warm cup of milk tea is a symbol of hospitality in Sri Lanka, and every household will have its own way of preparing the drink, the nuances of which are often held up with a particular sense of pride.

Text by Zahara Dawoodbhoy for Rasa Volume 1
Photos: Nazly Ahmed

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14/02/2024

My introduction to Jamaican chocolate-tea, or cocoa-tea to some, came by way of my maternal grandmother, Alma. As the matriarch of the family, she is our resident historian and keeper of nearly a hundred
years’ worth of precious stories and family secrets. She is a veritable treasure trove of Jamaican recipes.

In Whetstone Volume 7, Tricia Rudder shares the Jamaican legacy of Chocolate-Tea and her grandmother Alma’s recipe for Chocolate-tea

Illustration: Alicia Rudder

01/02/2024

We are thrilled to share High on the Hog was nominated for NAACP Image Award Outstanding Documentary. Congratulations to the entire team!

08/01/2024

05/01/2024

Have you ever been mesmerized by the food in TV and movie scenes? Or wondered what the process of creating those dishes is like? We have, so we asked Christine. Christine Tobin is a food stylist and culinary creative working in film, television, and editorial with a mission to bring stories to life through the beauty and culture of food.

Christine’s most recent work can be seen in the dishes and meals gorgeously and abundantly prepared on the HBO MAX’s hit show Julia, based on the life of Julia Child in the 1960s in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The second season of Julia aired on November 16th, and Stephen chatted with Christine about the significance Julia has had on Christine’s personal life, her career, and how she is bringing food to life on camera, personifying the dishes as their own character with their own identity.

23/12/2023

For anyone who has advocated for recognition for their academic work in the food realm, they know it isn’t always easy. And without Darra Goldstein, food studies may not have become as respected as it is today.

Darra Goldstein is an icon in the world of food publishing. She is the Founding Editor of Gastronomica: The Journal of Food and Culture and has written widely on literature, culture, art, and cuisine including six cookbooks. Her most recently released Preserved: Fruit and Preserved: Condiments are about the art of preserving. She currently serves on the Kitchen Cabinet of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History and the Advisory Board of the Julia Child Foundation for Gastronomy and the Culinary Arts.

On episode 14, Darra and Stephen chat about her time living abroad in Russia during the Cold War as a US Information Agency, how Russian literature helped shape her love of food, and her experience falling in love with Georgia and Georgian cuisine. Darra shares her journey to launching Gastronomica, which mirrors Whetstone’s origin story in many ways.

13/12/2023

Michael Cruse has amassed a passionate following of wine lovers since he first launched Ultramarine, a wine light ruby in color and full of fine bubbles, in 2008. So much so that you now have to join a waitlist to get a bottle. Using sparkling wine to examine uniquely Californian soils, in 2013 Michael opened Cruse Wine Co. based in Petaluma, California.
In 2016 he was named the San Francisco Chronicle's Winemaker of the Year. He also happens to be one of favorite winemakers in the world.

On episode 13, Michael shares the realities of running a successful craft wine business and what it takes to run an enduring business year after year.

Listen to the full episode now streaming wherever you get your podcasts!

12/12/2023

We’re thrilled to share two Whetstone articles were included in this year's Best American Food Writing! Congratulations to Amy Loeffler and Kenny Ng .

For Whetstone Volume 10, Amy writes how sweets are often associated with emotional love, but the more culturally, scientifically, and historically accurate symbol of our procreative nature is salt. On W Journal, “Fried Rice and Long Life” explores the dish’s long history in China and Chinese American cuisine. For Kenny, it’s also attached to memory and family tradition.

Special shoutout and congrats to editor Layla Schlack , Art Director Alex Bowman and Photo Director Lyric Lewin

Second slide photo credit: Melissa Alexander for Phyllis Iller
Third slide photo credit: Kenny Ng

05/12/2023

If you’re not already familiar with rising star Ana Castro, tomorrow is your chance to get to know her. In 2021, Ana opened Lengua Madre in New Orleans with a vision to elevate our current understanding of Mexican cuisine. She is now in the process of opening her first first solo venture as chef-owner, called Acamaya which will open in the spring of 2024 and feature coastal Mexican seafood. 

On episode 12, Stephen chats with Ana about about her experience with culinary school, wether the venture if worth it (recap: it’s not, and Ana explains exactly why). When it comes to passing down culinary knowledge, Ana makes it clear that she feels a personal need to protect her recipes and ensure they are shared with the right hands.

02/12/2023

Episode 11 with Roger Ross Williams now streaming anywhere you listen to podcasts.

Photo credit:

28/11/2023

If you’ve been watching the incredible season 2 of High on the Hog, then you’ll be thrilled to hear our first guest kicking off The Stephen Satterfield Show’s second season is none other than Roger Ross Williams. Roger is the founder of One Story Up Productions, is an Oscar, Emmy, and Peabody award winning director and producer (among his many, many other accolades).

We’re honored to have the opportunity to sit down with Roger and learn nuggets of expertise from him, about what sparks his creativity, his vision and cinematic masterpieces. Not all journeys to success are linear, and many obstacles can stand in the way, but as Roger shares, “We have to find different ways of reaching people. And that’s happening. It’s a battle and we’ll continue to fight and I’m a warrior in the frontlines of the battle. So I feel like that’s what I’m doing, I’m battling.”

You can listen to the full episode tomorrow, Wednesday, November 29th wherever you get your podcasts.

28/11/2023

In Palestine, a woman named Doha cradles a bouquet of wiry, branched thyme. Grown throughout the Levant, Thymus capitatus is a species of wild thyme grown native to the land.

When thyme is toasted with dried oregano, sesame seeds, ground sumac, and salt a fragrant tart, nutty, and herbaeous spice mix known as za’atar is produced.

Doha will then knead the wild thyme into man’ousheh, a popular dish made from circular flatbread topped with a paste of olive oil and za’atar. A mother and daughter then prepare the man’ousheh to be baked in the oven.

For many Levantine homes, za’atar is a steadfast staple in the kitchen.

Photos taken in 2018 by Leila Elamine and Anthony Morano

22/11/2023

Season two of High on the Hog is now streaming on ! "So much of our story has been suppressed. But how can a people know who they are if they don't know who they have been. It's on us to reclaim our stories.”

21/11/2023

Although smørrebrød now conjures up the image of a complex, layered pyramid of toppings in people’s minds, its origins go back to Denmark’s agrarian past. In fact, one could almost trace a correlation between toppings build-up and the meteoric rise of GDP in Denmark.

While there are many parallel developments in society that culminated in today’s smørrebrød culture, one factor was the emergence of Copenhagen as an urban center in the 1850s.

A substantial inflow of farmers and traders brought their fresh produce with them. At the end of the day, farmers settled down in bars and bodegas, which offered drinks and small bites—pieces of rye bread with cold cuts, pickled fish and cured meats with some herbs.

By the 1880s, such small smørrebrød restaurants became popular. It was in Oskar Davidsen’s wine shop that the smørrebrød attained its new, towering format. His granddaughter Ida Davidsen continues to run the restaurant under her name today.

From the Whetstone archives, by Priya Mani (). Read the full story on W Journal via the link in bio!

📷: Priya Mani

16/11/2023

Season 2 of The Stephen Satterfield Show is back next week! Catch up on season 1 in the meantime with Alicia Kennedy, author of No Meat Required, activist and Chef Reem Assil, owner of Reem's California, poet Hanif Abdurraqib and Chef
Gregory Gourdet, owner of Kann in Portland. Just some of the incredible guests that we spoke to on season 1. Take a listen wherever you listen to podcasts.

08/11/2023

One could easily mistake churchkhelas for hand dipped candlesticks with their variety in color, cylindrical shape and shiny exterior. They hang from shop walls in city markets tied in bunches giving off an unique taste and fermented grape aroma.

Originating in Georgian region of Samegrelo, churchkhela are made from almonds, walnuts, or hazelnuts threaded on a string and then dipped into a fruit juice mixture, like grape or mulberry. They are hung to dry then redipped before ready to eat. The consistency of the finished product is soft, dense and elastic. Made during the fall wine harvest they are enjoyed as a popular holiday snack cut into slices.