New Orleans has a long and cherished culinary heritage which many feared was lost in August 2005 when Hurricane Katrina broke the banks of the Mississippi, putting the future of the city at risk.

But in the post-Katrina years the New Orleans food community has worked tirelessly to preserve its traditions; old restaurants being revitalised, new ones opening and the city becoming one of the most exciting food centres in the USA.

My latest visit to New Orleans resulted from a chance conversation during the 2016 Oxford Literary Festival. At Claudia Roden’s 80th birthday dinner I introduced food writer and broadcaster Yotam Ottolenghi to distinguished food historian Dr Jessica Harris, who lives in the Marigny district of New Orleans. Yotam indicated his long-held ambition to visit the city, and letting my enthusiasm get the better of me I offered to arrange a trip. And so it was that eight months later, in November 2016, I found myself back in New Orleans with an entourage including Yotam, Jeremy Lee of Quo Vadis in Soho, Dan Saladino of the BBC Radio 4 Food Programme and 15 Oxford School of Hospitality Management students.

Our hosts, Jessica Harris and the journalist and film-maker Lolis Elie, were determined our busy schedule should reveal New Orleans and Louisiana’s distinctive culinary culture. Our first lunch was at Galatoire’s, one of the city’s oldest and grandest restaurants. Over emblematic dishes we discussed the origins of Southern Creole cuisine. The popular belief is that Creole cooking reflects the sophisticated tastes of French settlers, subsequently influenced by other European exiles. But this overlooks its roots in West Africa.

There can be few champions of Louisiana food as influential as John Folse. Using a dark roux as a base, incorporating the ‘holy trinity’ of onions, celery and bell peppers, he prepared a rich gumbo of duck and andouille (a smoked pork sausage), a showcase dish for indigenous ingredients of Bayou Country.

Worth $2 billion per year, sugar production remains one of Lousiana’s most important industrial sectors. Driving through vast sugar cane plantations, passing the French Colonial houses, echoes of it’s slave-driven dark history hung heavy.

Back in New Orleans we had one of the most emotional experiences of our week-long gastronomic adventure. Leah Chase, the queen of Creole cuisine, chef, author and television personality, with her late husband Edgar, established Dooky Chase as one of the city’s most iconic restaurants. Now 93, Ms Chase still works as head chef, overseeing every lunch service. During the 1960s Dooky Chase became a meeting place for leaders of the Civil Rights Movement, including Martin Luther King. To hear from her first hand was an incredible privilege.