Feeding Ukraine's refugees

World Central Kitchen's wartime mission [View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( This is [Kate Krader](, food editor here at Bloomberg. If you’re like me and find it hard to think beyond the devastation as the war in Ukraine [enters its second week](, here’s a small ray of light: the work of [World Central Kitchen](. The nonprofit, feed-the-world organization that was founded by chef and [humanitarian hero José Andrés]( was on the ground near the Ukraine border within hours of Russia’s invasion on Friday, Feb. 25. The mission: [serve hot meals to refugees](. José Andrés hands out meals at in Medyka on the evening of Feb. 27. Source: World Central Kitchen “There are many ways to fight. Some people fight making sure people are fed. Those are our people,” Andrés told me via e-mail, from Medyka, one of the Poland-Ukraine border crossings. He also pledged to put some of the [$100 million]( that Jeff Bezos awarded him last July toward the current crisis. Within a week, World Central Kitchen has served nearly 160,000 meals—now about 35,000 per day—to people fleeing the war. Joining the endeavor are local restaurants and food truck volunteers, such as Oh My Ramen (great name!), who drove four hours from Katowice, Poland to dish out soup on the Ukraine border near Korczowa. Oleksandr Levenko (aka Sasha) and Vitalii Yedynak from Oh My Ramen. Photo: Courtesy World Central Kitchen It’s a valuable moment to consider the importance of a hot meal, key to WCK’s mission. Why chicken stew and pilaf with sausages is so much more nourishing than soulless, prepackaged MREs (meals, ready to eat) that [only preppers]( can be enthusiastic about. And I should know—I taste-tested some [back in 2017]( and haven’t picked one up since. The Ukraine war is just the most recent humanitarian emergency for WCK which has offered frontline disaster relief worldwide, since Andrés responded to the earthquake in Haiti in 2010. Consider all the work the organization has done since then. Master Catering participated in the effort at Medyka on Feb. 28. Source: World Central Kitchen You can connect with Kate Krader online at @kkrader on [Twitter]( and [Instagram](. [José Andrés: The Power of Food]( The Nobel Prize nominee says you cannot overstate its importance. [What’s Cooking at World Central Kitchen?]( How the pandemic transformed the organization. [Chef José Andrés’s Simple Advice for Helping Those in Distress]( Don’t wait. Act. [I Volunteered at World Central Kitchen to Feed the Hungry. I Ended Up Finding the Meaning I Needed]( The rewards of assembling those reheat-able meals [The Heroic Story of How José Andrés’s Charity Feeds 250,000 People a Day in a Pandemic]( World Central Kitchen, humanitarian aid disrupter Coming Together in Austin, Texas Austin’s SXSW will be in-person this year for the first time since the golden days of 2019. The festival that celebrates tech, music, wellness, you name it, will jostle for attention on the world’s social media feeds from March 11-20. The most valuable information you can have for SXSW—aside from the almost 40 sessions devoted just to [crypto](, like ‘Move Over [NFTs](. Here Come the [DAOs](’—is a list of the best new restaurants in town. The Texas capital is one of the country’s biggest winners in [the great tech migration](, and as a result, its food and drinks scene is booming. To guide us, we’ve asked top Texas chefs for their picks. Front and center at La Barbecue is succulent, crispy brisket. Courtesy: La Barbecue Where would Aaron Franklin, founder of world-famous Franklin’s Barbecue, tell you to go? To [Honey Moon Spirit Lounge](, a wild looking (and sounding) place with green brocade wallpaper and red velvet banquettes and chandeliers adorning the patio. Order the koji-aged steak frites with bone marrow demi glace—“and a boulevardier!” he insists. If Austin isn’t on the agenda, here are other recent dining guides to make you hungry for top cities around the world. [The Best New Restaurants in Austin]( [The Best New Restaurants in Miami]( [The Best New Restaurants in Singapore]( [The Best New Restaurants in London]( [The Best New Restaurants in New York]( [The Best New Restaurants in Washington, D.C.]( What Else I’m Reading It’s a good moment to consider the culinary world from an unjaded point of view. Here’s to remembering that someone’s first Michelin meal can spark joy (the tiny flower garnish!) and to paying tribute to Pierre Franey, who helped create the concept of cooking in minutes (well, 60 minutes). - [‘Common as muck’]( Birmingham writer Kirsty Bosley tries a $200 tasting menu for the first time. Read it and try not to be delighted by her experience. - Once upon a time, a 60-minute meal was considered fast. Adam Reiner [flashes back to Pierre Franey](, the guy who sped up home cooking. - Have we reached peak plant milk? Apparently not. [Get ready to drink a potato](. - Ellie Hunt’s update to the often-trite bildungsroman-in-the-kitchen genre is entertaining not because you learn she gave herself food poisoning—twice—but for the refreshing advice: [investigate your resistance](. So, you had some questions… Every week, we are [soliciting questions](mailto:daydreams@bloomberg.net?subject=I have a question) from readers via Bloomberg Pursuits social media. DM us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter, and we may feature your queries in a future newsletter. Who is your favorite up-and-coming chef? KATE: Great question! I have become a huge fan of [Jae Jong](, who specializes in a singular version of Korean-Cajun cooking. (I picked her [kimchi-laced jambalaya](as one of my favorite dishes last year.) She ran the terrific pop-up KJun in the summer of 2021, before shuttering—we later found out it was to film the [latest season of Top Chef](, which just started airing. She says that she’ll be opening a place in March, so stay tuned! Chef Jae Jung's Korean take on Cajun cuisine is genius. Photographer: Clay Williams/Bloomberg What’s your best quick recipe for an easy, healthy dinner at home? KATE: I am sadly not the person who should be answering questions on healthy recipes—the other night I asked for extra cheese on my [nachos](. But I do have a favorite healthy recipe for swordfish brochettes aka kebabs from [Dinner in French](, from the great Melissa Clark. Basically you marinate cubes of the hearty fish in harissa, oil, garlic, and grated lemon and lime zest, then grill. It’s a delicious, versatile mixture that you can put on so many things—chicken breasts, salmon, shrimp. And there’s so much good storebought harissa out there now. But please [let me know yours](mailto:kkrader@bloomberg.net?subject=Healthy recipe), I need more healthy recipes! Shrimp and pepper skewers are another way to put harissa to excellent use. Source: The Goodtime Hotel What’s your favorite salad recipe? KATE: I don’t have a favorite salad recipe, but I do have a favorite all-purpose dressing that’s made with soy sauce, garlic, and powdered mustard, so it’s got an enticing salty umami flavor. It’s based [on this Spruce Eats recipe](, and it’s supremely versatile, working on any sturdy leafy green. I always have a jar of it in my refrigerator. Here’s an actual recipe, too: a spectacular take on tuna niçoise from “World’s Best Restaurant” Mirazur in the south of France. That soy dressing would be delicious on it, just saying. Photographer: Caroline Bramlett What’s your favorite restaurant? KATE: This is a question I get all the time, and my answer depends on the day. Right now, it’s [CheLi](, the ethereal Shanghai restaurant up a set of stairs in Manhattan’s East Village. The menu is long, and I haven’t explored it enough because I am stuck on one thing: the exhilaratingly spicy and restorative [house special fish stew]( with pickled cabbage and chili. They also have what might be the best rice in the city. Next week my excellent colleague, car critic [Hannah Elliot](, is on newsletter duty. She’ll be back from the Amelia Island collectible car auctions as well as Spain, where she was test-driving a new Ferrari (jealous!), and ready to talk shop. Message her on [Twitter]( or [Instagram]( to get your pressing questions answered. Follow Us Like getting the Pursuits newsletter? [Subscribe to Bloomberg.com for unlimited access]( to trusted, data-driven journalism and gain expert analysis from exclusive subscriber-only newsletters. You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Pursuits newsletter. If a friend forwarded you this message, [sign up here]( to get it in your inbox. [Unsubscribe]( [Bloomberg.com]( [Contact Us]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10022 [Ads Powered By Liveintent]( [Ad Choices](