The author of The Melting Pot recipe book Maggie Ogunbanwo talks with Ewa Pałka about being crowned Best In The World in the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards, and her passion for food and Wales.
Did you always feel cooking is what you wanted to do?
I always used to say to myself that I didn’t know what I was going to do. But just now, talking to you, I’ve had an epiphany – because as a child I would cook pies outside and make them look good! And then I remember saying to my mother I wanted to go into catering… we were in Nigeria at the time, and she said no, it wasn’t going to happen; I needed to go to university, there was no profit in catering. And so I went to university.
But I’ve always understood food, always had the instinct to know what to do. Writing a book was always somewhere there, but I had no idea how to do it. I self-published a book, 100 Things I Wish My Mother Had Taught Me, just before The Melting Pot came out, which showed me that publishing a book is possible.
This all came up during the pandemic, during Black Lives Matter. We had people calling us, saying can you represent here, can you talk here? I’m not into this tokenism thing. I spoke to [the Welsh Government’s] Food And Drink Division – let’s do something if we want to support diversity. They threw it back at me to come up with a project. Caroline, my marketing lady, was like, why not? I was talking to this publisher 30 minutes later. I was jumping on the ceilings! It was so exciting.
We decided we’re doing a book to represent diversity and related food in Wales. I connected a diverse group of producers to put recipes together. The title has two reasons: I was running a cafe called The Melting Pot [in Penygroes], and because it’s supposed to be a melting pot of foods and of the minority ethnic around Wales. Less than six months later, I held the first copy. I still remember the feeling.
How many people contributed to The Melting Pot in the end?
We had about 17 contributors, but my daughter and friend helped too, so I should say 19!
It’s fantastic when the family engages; everyone puts their heart into it.
What’s funny is my daughter’s cooking is not her favourite thing. So it was a labour of love!
And then you won the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards, in the migrant category.
We had a launch in February 2021, and a short while later I got an email saying The Melting Pot had been nominated for an international cooking award. I thought somebody was scamming me and ignored it for two months. I called up the publisher – The Melting Pot was invited to the Alfred Nobel Museum in Sweden. And then the next thing I know, I won the award! I was mixing with other writers, people who’ve written 30 books and won awards, and here’s me with my one book.
You have another book on the way, too…
I am writing a cookery book without pictures – that’s the next one. The Melting Pot is a great cookbook and a great coffee table book. Photos by Huw Jones are fantastic. Even if you don’t like cooking, you can look through it!
This year, we published a plant-based book through the same graphic publisher, African Twist. We produce African-inspired products, sell them online, and go to festivals and fairs.
What brought you to Wales?
I was born in London, went back to Nigeria when I was three, and at 23, we emigrated to the UK and lived in England for many years. We visited Wales on holiday, and we said we would like to retire here if the opportunity arose – but I didn’t want to move yet. I was successful, my cafes were building up, and I had our friends and family support. We then visited Wales for my 40th birthday and I had an epiphany. I had a natural meeting with God: that might sound strange to people, but that’s what it was for me. God had me thinking about the people of Wales.
That’s how my husband and I and our two children picked ourselves up and moved everything lock, stock and barrel with no jobs to north Wales. My food business took a different direction, from catering to food manufacturing, supported very much by the Welsh Government. God has opened so many opportunities for us here in Wales, and I’m convinced it’s where he wanted me to be.
It feels empowering, doesn’t it, to realise how much you’ve achieved?
It is. And I love to tell those stories. So other women can hear them and think, “I can achieve them!” I came from Nigeria, from one environment to another. I’ve managed to make a way for myself, and that’s key. Maybe it’s imposter syndrome: I look at myself and I don’t think I’ve done a lot. And then I start telling people, and they start reflecting on me – what I’ve done, or what I’m doing, is impacting them.
The Melting Pot is published by Graffeg. Price: £9.99. Info: here
Info: maggiesafricantwist.com
words EWA PAŁKA
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