Chef Marcus Samuelsson has a unique perspective on food and culture, with family roots in Sweden and Ethiopia.
His exposure to those cultures and their cuisine has helped spark his interest in learning about food from all over the world and how it’s woven into American food and culture.
That’s the subject of his PBS series No Passport Required, which, in an episode airing on Jan. 27 at 8 p.m. on Houston Public Media TV 8, highlights the food and culture of Houston’s Nigerian community and that of other West African cultures found in the city.
During Samuelsson’s visit to the most diverse city in America, he explores the food and culture of the Nigerian, Senegalese, Ghanian and other West African communities by cooking with chefs and home cooks; visiting pop-ups and tasting menu restaurants; and learning a dance called the shaku shaku, according to the episode’s description.
The show features seven businesses in the Houston area, including Wazobia Market, Safari Restaurant, Suya Hut, Jolly Jolly Bakery, Taste of Nigeria, Indigo and Cafeza.
The episode will air on PBS Primary on the following dates:
Jan. 27 at 8 p.m.
Jan. 27 at 9 p.m.
Jan. 29 at 2:30 a.m.,
Feb. 2 at 2 a.m.
You can also stream the full episode here.