African Food

Africa is a massive continent that has seen much movement of immigrants and indigenous people for centuries, and this migration of people has influenced the evolution of African food. Most African cooking is a mixture of indigenous African dishes and imported food from the colonizing countries and immigrants.

Although Africa is a huge continent it does have some common, staple foods, but it's really an area of distinctive regional differences. In the West, we're probably most familiar with Northern African cooking, especially through Moroccan restaurants. Africans have also introduced many ways of cooking to the American South that are familiar today in grits, flatbreads and fritters etc.

In general, Africans like to eat fresh fruit and vegetables, game and fish. The chief root vegetables are yams and cassava. They like to steam their vegetables and they use hot spices and marinades. Meat stews are usually based on chicken.

Peanuts, known as groundnuts in Africa, are popular in garnishes and soups. Melons and in particular watermelons are common African food. In the villages African dishes tend to contain a lot of whey, curd and milk. The villagers also like vegetables, cereals and sweet potatoes. The coastal regions use chillies a lot and fish marinated in ginger and cayenne pepper is very popular.

West Africans like to eat black eyed peas and use okra in soups and stews. They mix fish and meat together in their stews. The French brought their cuisine to Senegal, particularly garlic, scallions, lime juice and the method of marinating.

East African dishes do not involve much meat as livestock is used for trading purposes and not for food. The only strong influence here from outside is the legacy of the Arab settlers who brought cloves, saffron and rice pilafs.

Bananas and coconuts are another popular African food here. Ethiopian dishes usually contain meat and Ethiopians also eat raw meat. They like flatbreads, hot peppers and hard cooked eggs.

Angola and Mozambique were both colonized by the Portuguese, who brought limes, lemons and oranges. The Portuguese from Brazil brought pineapples, bananas and pigs. Most dishes in Mozambique are based on fish and they have a lot of hot pepper dishes.

South African cooking is a combination of indigenous Bantu traditions and the influence of the British and Dutch settlers. The French also played a part, starting up many vineyards, and the immigrant workers from Malaysia brought curries. The Indians sent by the British to work on the railway construction also brought their cuisine.

African dishes are very often accompanied by alcoholic drinks, except for the Muslim North. South Africa, of course, is world famous for its first class red and white wines. Kenya has a local beer called Tusker which is exported. The Tusker goes particularly well with African food. There are many bee keepers in Ethiopia and they make a drink called Tej from the honey which is similar in taste to mead. Ethiopian coffee is also well known in the West.