Twenty Siblings and Sardines

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About this episode

Chef Mawa McQueen was born in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, the oldest of 21 children. She was raised in Paris, trained at culinary school there, and now runs six restaurants in Aspen, Colorado, including Mawa's Kitchen, Mawita, and Crepe Therapy Café. Her strongest food memory, though, is something she wouldn't share with anyone: the once-a-year school lunch of canned sardines stuffed into a fresh baguette. In this episode, Chef Claudia Sandoval finally gets her friend Mawa across the table. They trace her food memories back to the markets of Abidjan, where papaya, goat, and fermented fish wake up every one of your senses. They also dig into the plantains, yucca, corn, and hibiscus that connect…