This story is from The Pulse, a weekly health and science podcast. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Find our full episode on America’s 250th anniversary here.

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Philadelphia pepper pot soup was one of the first American street foods. It has an amazing origin story, but for a long time part of that story has been skimmed over. We’ve heard about pepper pot soup feeding George Washington and his American troops over the harsh winter of 1777 in Valley Forge, an apocryphal tale, during the Revolutionary War. We’ve seen the pepper pot soup label on Campbell’s soup cans, and even in Andy Warhol’s art. But the African and Caribbean roots of the dish have been frequently overlooked.

Reporter Justin Kramon tells us that story, and takes us to a special culinary event, a “pepper pot soup slam” where the iconic American dish gets reimagined by three of Philadelphia’s premier chefs: Omar Tate, Angie Brown, and Shola Olunloyo.

In this story, Michael W. Twitty, author of The Cooking Gene, which won the James Beard Foundation Book Award, shares the history of pepper pot soup and how it was brought to America through the Caribbean and South America during the trans-Atlantic slave trade and how it has transformed along the way. 

Then, it’s time to eat. Philadelphia Inquirer restaurant critic Craig Laban, food historian William Woys Weaver, whose forthcoming book Pepperpot City explores the food history of Philadelphia, and Host of The Pulse Maiken Scott sit down with the chefs to taste their creations. 

Thanks also to Tonya Hopkins and Jessica Harris for background information, and to Tonya Hopkins’ earlier story about pepper pot soup.