Nigerian cuisine has a misinformation problem — and Ronke Shakirat-Edoho, founder of 9jafoodie, has spent years doing something about it.

In Part 2 of this conversation, we get into the parts of Nigerian food culture that don't always make it into the conversation: the street food scene and an unspoken rule about competition that shapes how it works, what happens when Nigerian food has to adapt to a new country and a new ingredient list, and the nutrition myths that have followed this cuisine for years.

We also get into palm oil — the real story, and why collapsing a whole traditional food culture into an industrial agricultural problem is doing a lot of people a disservice.

Ronke also shares what drove her to start 9jafoodie in the first place. There's a quote she came across on a major platform about African food that she has never forgotten — and hearing it in her words makes it land.

📍 Find Ronke:

- Instagram: @9jafoodie https://www.instagram.com/9jafoodie/

- Products: atarefoods.com

- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@9jafoodie

- Healthy Nigerian Food: https://loseitnigerian.com/

Nigerian cuisine is one of the most layered, complex food cultures in the world — and most of us are only scratching the surface. Today I'm sitting down with Ronke Shikirat-Edoho, founder of 9jafoodie, to start changing that.

In Part 1, we get into the building blocks of Nigerian food: palm oil and why it has been a cornerstone of West African cooking for generations, the slow-stewed pepper base that shows up across dish after dish, and a deep culture of fermentation that shapes everything from the main carbohydrates to the condiments. We break down jollof rice — what actually makes the Nigerian version distinct from Ghanaian or Senegambian jollof, and why Ronke draws a firm line between traditional jollof and what she calls "internet jollof." We also get into egusi, a melon seed that gets turned into soup while the melon itself goes completely uneaten, and a whole world of leafy greens that have been central to West African cooking for generations but that most people outside the region have never heard of.Part 2 drops in two weeks — Ronke gets into the palm oil controversy, Nigerian street food, and the misinformation about African food she's spent nearly 20 years correcting. Don't miss it.

📍 Find Ronke:- Instagram: @9jafoodie https://www.instagram.com/9jafoodie/ - Products: atarefoods.com- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@9jafoodie

- Healthy Nigerian Food: https://loseitnigerian.com/

In part two of our Colombia conversation, Caro from Colombian Foodie takes us deeper into the culture — past the well-known dishes and into the food that shapes daily life. We talk about the role soup plays at every meal (yes, even when it's 30 degrees out), the street food scene from Cali to the coast, and the nightlife food culture that ends with a bowl of consommé at 4am.We also get into something that doesn't come up enough: Colombian fruit. Caro introduces me to chontaduro — a fruit that smells a little funky, has the texture of a potato, and apparently tastes incredible with salt and honey. And then there's the fact that Colombia has over 2,000 fruit varieties, many of which are still being rediscovered. There's a whole movement around it, and honestly it deserves its own episode.We close out with holiday food traditions, the unexpected universality of Russian salad, indigenous and African food influences, and Caro's genuinely difficult answer to the last meal question. Part 2 delivers.🌿 Connect with Caro: - Instagram: @colombian_foodie_blog https://www.instagram.com/colombian_foodie_blog/ - TikTok & YouTube: @ColombianFoodie- Website: https://en.colombianfoodie.com/Hang out with me on Instagram: Food & Life in Kazakhstan: @tastytrailstravelpod https://www.instagram.com/tastytrailstravelpod/Identity & Belonging: @wherewefindhome https://www.instagram.com/wherewefindhome/ ✨ Coming up next:More food & culture stories from around the worldIf you enjoy travel that’s centered around food, culture, and real experiences, don’t forget to like, subscribe, and turn on notifications so you don’t miss what’s next.