There's a moment in Momma Cherri's kitchen, and in the kitchens of everyone who's cooked with her, where the smell changes.
Something shifts. The food starts to breathe. It stops being ingredients and starts being a meal.
A lot of that comes down to seasoning. Not a handful of separate jars grabbed in a panic, not a recipe you have to follow to the letter, just one blend that does the work for you. Warm, deep, layered, and unmistakably soulful.
That's Momma's Love Dust.
So, What Actually Is Love Dust?
Love Dust is Momma Cherri's signature seasoning blend. It's a mix built around the flavours that define real soul food cooking: warmth, depth, and that something-extra that's hard to name but impossible to miss once you taste it.
It's not a single-note spice hit. It's a blend that layers. The more time it has with the food (a marinade, a slow cook, a proper rub), the more it gives back.
Momma didn't create it for chefs. She created it for people who love to eat well and want their cooking to feel like something, without needing a culinary qualification to get there.
How Do You Use It?
This is the part people are often surprised by: you can use Love Dust in far more places than you'd expect. Once you have a jar on the shelf, you'll find yourself reaching for it across the week, not just for one specific dish, but for the everyday meals that deserve a bit more soul.
Here are some of the ways it works best:
Chicken
Whether you're roasting a whole bird, cooking thighs in the oven, or frying on the hob, Love Dust works as a dry rub, a marinade base mixed with oil, or a seasoning pressed under the skin. It gives chicken that deep golden warmth that tastes like it took hours, even when it didn't.
Ribs and Slow-Cooked Meat
Rub generously before cooking. Give it time. The longer the heat, the more the blend settles into the meat and builds flavour from the inside out.
Roasted Vegetables and Wedges
Toss with a little oil before roasting. This is one of the more unexpected uses, but it transforms a simple tray of roasted sweet potatoes, cauliflower, or wedges into something people actually ask about.
Soups and Stews
Add a measured amount early in the cook, then taste and adjust. It adds a richness and warmth that shop-bought stock doesn't always give you on its own.
Rice Dishes
Whether it's a simple side of fluffy white rice or something more like a pilaf or jollof-adjacent dish, a pinch of Love Dust in the cooking water changes everything.
Marinades
Mix with oil, a little citrus, and whatever you have to hand for a marinade that works on chicken, fish, or even halloumi.
Fish and Seafood
Go lighter here. Love Dust brings warmth without overwhelming more delicate flavours. It works beautifully with salmon, white fish, and prawns.
BBQ and Grilling
This is where it was always going to shine. As a rub before the grill, it caramelises into the surface and gives that smoky-sweet depth that makes BBQ food feel special.
Blackened Catfish with Momma's Love Dust
Pair It With What You're Already Cooking From
Love Dust is wonderful on its own and even better alongside Momma's cookbook and recipe cards, which are built around the same flavours and cooking principles.
If you already have Momma's cookbook or her recipe cards, you'll notice how naturally Love Dust fits into what you're making. Many of the recipes are built around these exact flavour profiles, and having the seasoning blend to hand means you're working with the same palate Momma cooks from, even on the nights when you're adapting things to suit what's in the fridge.
It's not about following a recipe exactly. It's about learning what flavours work together and trusting your instincts, with a little help from a seasoning that's already done the hard work.
If you haven't picked up the cookbook yet, it's a genuinely warm, practical guide to Momma's style of cooking: generous, unfussy, and deeply satisfying. The recipe cards are a lighter option if you want to start with a handful of signature dishes before committing to the full collection.
Pair Love Dust with Momma's cookbook and recipe cards
Explore Momma's Kitchen Collection
Love Dust pairs beautifully with the cookbook and recipe cards, all built around the same soul-food flavours.
A Note on What Love Dust Isn't
It isn't a miracle fix. It isn't going to rescue food that's been overcooked, under-seasoned at every other stage, or made without care.
What it will do is raise the flavour ceiling on food you're already cooking with attention. It's a seasoning for people who cook with love, who want the food to taste like something, to feel generous and nourishing, to sit in front of people and say this was made for you.
That's what Momma's cooking has always been about.
Where to Start If You're New to It
If you've never used Love Dust before and you're not sure where to begin, the honest answer is: chicken.
Season it properly, let it sit for at least thirty minutes if you can, and roast or fry it the way you normally would. That first meal will tell you everything you need to know about what the blend does, and from there, you'll find yourself reaching for it naturally.
Once you've got confidence with it, try the ribs. Then the roasted vegetables. Then the soup.
And if you want guidance on any of it, the cookbook and recipe cards are there: warm, practical, and written in Momma Cherri's voice.