African cuisine

Now, that the world knows more about Africa they are bound to be interested in our cuisine. There are many dishes (meals) Africans eat that originated from other continents outside Africa but I'm not going to focus on them & will focus on purely African/African-style dishes. There are quite a few local fast-food chains in Africa including a variety of well known international fast-food chains but I'm not going to focus on them on this blog either but rather homemade African dishes. 

1) Sorghum. Sorghum is an original African food. In Zulu culture, sorghum is often made beer or a porridge. Sorghum is said to have been first cultivated in central Africa. 

2) Maize meal. Known as maize meal in South African English, it goes by the name fufu in Nigeria, nsima in Zambia & uphuthu or ipapa in my home province, KZN. It's often eaten with a side dish or with sour milk in it's drier version (uphuthu), made softer & eaten alone as a morning porridge or eaten with a side dish as ipapa.

3) Jollof rice. Personally, I have never tasted authentic west African jollof rice but I think I have a idea how it's made. It's common rice mixed with fish, beef or other kind of stew. 

4) UJeqe. Ujeqe is an African steamed bread that's often eaten with soup or sometimes used as bread i.e. for sandwiches. 

Jeqe with inyama yangaphakathi (inside meat).

5) Flame grilled spiced chicken. This is a common Mozambique dish & has gone international with claims that even some European royalty have come to enjoy it. It's chicken grilled & seasoned with spices & herbs. 

Grilled chicken with herbs & spices with chips on the side by Chef Mthoko M. Mpofana 

6) Amanqina. This translates to chicken feet in my native dialect. As we often eat animals in the age old head-to-toe fashion. Eating everything including intestines, head, feet & tongue except the brains, eyes & private parts of an animal. Chicken feet (jokingly called walkie talkies by English-speaking South Africans) are a delicacy often eaten alone or in a stew in South Africa. 

As I am from southern Africa, I probably focused on more southern African meals but here are a few Nigerian meals & some other of my native local meals. I'm sure there are many other great African delicacies but just can't write them all down as the list would be too long. Also, don't be shy to down these meals with some coffee as I hear it's also an African drink. Bon appétit.