Yewande Komolafe on Disability, Cooking and the Restorative Power of a Good Meal

KQED's Forum

KQED

News, Politics, News Commentary

4.2 • 726 Ratings

🗓️ 3 February 2026

⏱️ 54 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

New York Times cooking writer and columnist Yewande Komolafe has long loved the solitary, meditative act of crafting intricate meals and comfort foods in the kitchen. But after multiple amputations profoundly altered her body, Komolafe had to learn to cook in a new way: with adaptive tools, learning “how to whisk a bowl of cream to milky soft peaks with prosthetic hands,” and with other chefs’ assistance. That collaboration helped Komolafe better understand the curative effects of a good meal, both “physiologically and psychologically.” We talk with Komolafe about the restorative powers of cooking a hot dish of fried calamari or shrimp scampi and her journey of self-rediscovery. Her new article for the Times is “How Losing My Limbs Turned Me Into a Different Kind of Cook.” Guests: Yewande Komolafe, cooking writer and columnist, The New York Times Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Now, are all the traitors present?
0:02.5	Let's get started, shall we?
0:04.5	From rags to riches.
0:05.8	I'm so sick of this.
0:07.0	Working like a dog and being treated worse.
0:09.1	Yorkshire to New York.
0:10.7	Poor climbers, you and me.
0:12.4	A life dedicated to revenge.
0:14.4	Let's make this an occasion to remember.
0:16.9	A woman of substance on Channel 4.
0:19.1	Stream now.
0:20.1	Support for KQED podcasts comes from lifelong medical care.
0:24.2	Providing health services across the East Bay.
0:26.6	Lifelong helps kids stay healthy by providing whole person care
0:29.9	while supporting moms, dads, and all caregivers.
0:33.2	Be part of the next generation of care at lifelongmedical.org.
0:38.1	From KQED.
0:41.5	Welcome to Forum. I'm Grace Wan in Fermina Kim.
0:45.4	New York Times food columnist and cookbook author, Yawanda Komalafé, has been a comforting presence
0:50.8	in my kitchen for years. She introduced me to Jolof Rice. Like her, I believe
0:55.9	shortbread is a perfect cookie and her Gochi Zhang chicken and vegetable sheet pan recipe, which has
1:01.6	over 10,000 five-star reviews. Well, that one is a banger. For Komalafi, the kitchen has always been a place
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from KQED, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of KQED and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.