( ENSPIRE Entertainment ) Culture Kitchen’s host Bren Herrera shares how to Achieve Time-Efficient, Delicious food while Celebrating Culture
ENSPIRE Contributor: Kaitlyn Cruz
Are you looking to curate authentic Afro-Caribbean food, but don’t know where to start? Bren Herrera on Culture Kitchen has got you covered. The popular Chef Bren Herrera hosts the fun, upbeat lifestyle show. The D.C.-native delights audiences with her flavorful recipes, stories, infectious personality, and Afro-Latina flair.
Herrera is an award-winning chef, TV personality, actress, entrepreneur, and author with a masterful ability to curate and tell stories that matter. Herrera remains authentic and true to her culture, representing a group of people that society has neglected and abused. By showing up authentically as herself, Herrera represents and inspires viewers all around. Herrera uses cooking to show the beauty and diversity that exists in other cultures, allowing that to be celebrated on-screen.
Herrera’s love for cooking began at a young age, as her Mom introduced her to the art of pressure cooking. Pressure cooking, in simple terms, involves cooking foods under high temperature and steam pressure, in order to cook foods faster. This method allows you to save time and energy while maintaining flavor and nutrition. These are philosophies Herrera fully supports.
Herrera uses cooking to celebrate her Afro-Cuban roots. Herrera combines Cuba’s African, European, and Spanish-influenced cuisine, with modern flavors and textures. In one of the latest episodes of Culture Kitchen, Bren shows us some traditional Jamaican and Cuban breakfast foods. She starts off with Ackee and saltfish with a sweet potato hash, served with a Cuban-style goat cheese pastry. She wraps up with a creamy rum and a Malta drink.
Through her show, Herrera also emphasizes the importance of family. In several episodes, you can find Herrera bringing her family members on to help her cook some fried plantains, carne asada, arroz congri, and toasted coconut flan. Together, they celebrate the richness and history of their culture that is so present in the food. They demonstrate the power of food to unite and inspire, all while making our bellies and hearts happy.
Culture Kitchen continues to be an outlet where Herrera uses cooking to share her love of food and culture. Herrera continues to inspire, not only on-screen but through her other platforms. Her cookbook, Modern Pressure Cooking, is made for audiences to recreate and enjoy time-efficient, flavorful recipes at home. Whether through her book, her HouseofBren website, or her podcast, she continues to bring awareness to and discuss topics that matter.
For more information about Culture Kitchen, and the CLEO TV network, visit www.mycleo.tv and check out CLEO TV’s YouTube Channel.
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