Which PBS chef wrote The Encyclopedia of Cajun & Creole Cuisine?

PBS chef John Folse wrote The Encyclopedia of Cajun & Creole Cuisine.

John David Folse is a Louisiana chef, restaurateur, television host, and writer widely associated with documenting Cajun and Creole foodways. His television work includes A Taste of Louisiana, produced for PBS, which helped introduce regional dishes, ingredients, and culinary history to viewers beyond the state.

The encyclopedia was published in 2004 and is part cookbook, part cultural record. Folse’s writing places recipes within Louisiana’s plantation, farming, fishing, hunting, and immigrant histories. That background matters because Cajun and Creole cuisines are related but not identical: both developed in Louisiana, yet they reflect different communities, locations, and historical influences.

Folse also wrote The Evolution of Cajun & Creole Cuisine and Chef John Folse’s Plantation Celebrations. The other options are notable Louisiana food personalities, but they did not write this particular encyclopedia. Justin Wilson was famous for Cajun cooking and humor, Frank Davis was a New Orleans television personality, and Emeril Lagasse is associated with New Orleans cuisine, but the book’s author is Folse.