PODCAST: Durkhanai Ayubi on Displacement, Food and Hope

Durkhanai Ayubi talks to Cheryl about displacement, the beauty of food and its power to bring communities together. She also reflects on hope, resilience, and her family’s restaurant, sharing how these experiences have shaped her writing. Her book, She Who Tastes, Knows, is out now.

About the author:

Durkhanai Ayubi is an Afghan-born writer. Her work is committed to unmasking false and fragmenting narratives of progress and interjecting with the lens of the liminal. Her first book, Parwana: Recipes and Stories from an Afghan Kitchen (2020) received global acclaim. Her new book, She Who Tastes, Knows (2026) offers a sweeping repositioning of shared identity and possibility, told through the abundance and reckonings held in the food and ingredients that shape her life.