Rodney P. Mason Jr. was reluctant to join the Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club. He was an Alabama A&M University undergraduate when his father, a Zulu stalwart, first extended the invitation.

Nene, a chef, TV personality, and cookbook author, has made it her mission to bring the flavors of her ancestors to the rest of the world. “Braai, or cooking over an open fire, is how Zulu ...