On Feb. 6, the Black Cultural Center (BCC) invited Thomas Ramsey, associate director and executive chef at Swarthmore’s Dining and Community Commons (DCC), to teach students how to prepare Gullah Geechee cuisine. The event kicked off the “Black History Commemorations” program, a series of lectures and events honoring the 100th anniversary of Black History Month.
According to Ramsey, the Gullah Geechee cooking tradition is derived from the cultural practices of enslaved Africans and their descendants living in the coastal Southeast region of the United States.
Ramsey developed the cooking class in response to what he considered insufficient programming for Black and Brown students. He was especially interested in designing an interactive teaching experience that would delve into the food’s cultural significance. “We all love to eat, but sometimes we don’t know where the food originated,” Ramsey said in an interview with The Phoenix.
Ramsey’s passion for Gullah Geechee cuisine and traditions started at home, with the food prepared by his South Carolinian and Virginian family members. Ramsey learned a lot from his father, who was also a chef. He cites his father’s black-eyed peas and smoked meat, as well as his mother’s mac and cheese, as his major inspirations.
“[South Carolina and Virginia are] where I get a lot of my food roots, and I’ve taken a lot of those flavors and adapted them into many of the things I do on a regular basis now.”
Participants gathered for the class in the DCC Teaching Kitchen. Ramsey used the Kitchen’s flatscreen monitor, which displayed an overhead view of the countertop, to lead the session. Attendees watched from the two rows of tables in front of the counter. Ramsey started off by explaining Gullah Geechee history, then introduced the ingredients for the day’s dish: shrimp, collard greens, sweet potato cornbread, baked macaroni and cheese, and roasted chicken.
Volunteers joined Ramsey at the front of the room, helping him to prepare the different parts of the meal. Before and during cooking, Ramsey quizzed attendees on the history of the dish that they were making. Among others, the class discussed James Hemings, the enslaved chef who created the original recipe for mac and cheese. Furthermore, Ramsey educated participants on basic cooking practices, such as the importance of washing one’s hands after handling raw chicken to avoid salmonella poisoning. He also offered plenty of culinary tidbits, including the replacement of cream with milk in cornbread and the suggestion to season food “from the heart” rather than according to recipes.
As for the food, attendees said the meal did not disappoint.
“My favorite thing that we made was the sweet potato cornbread. It was absolutely delicious, and I find myself still thinking about it days later,” attendee Aselah Davy ’28 shared.
Another attendee, Kgosi Hauya ’27, was also enthusiastic about the food, saying, “That was by far some of the best shrimp I have ever had in my life.”
According to Davy and Hauya, Ramsey’s hands-on learning approach, the cultural immersion, and the meal itself are what made the experience special. Both Davy and Hauya came into the class with limited cooking experience, but left feeling eager to incorporate what they learned into their home cooking.
“My biggest takeaway was that cooking is an intentional skill that needs time and dedication to perfect,” Hauya said. “Beforehand, I saw cooking as just a means to an end, but hearing about how much time it took for the chef to prepare all of the elements of the meal made me realize that I need to be more meticulous in my craft if I want to obtain the best results.”
For Ramsey, the time that he spent “in front, answering questions,” was what made the class rewarding. Most of all, he enjoyed being able to “incorporate you all into cooking with me.” Ramsey went on to say that as the DCC executive chef, he is always happy to interact with students and hear what they have to say about the food.
