http://rootscuisine.org

Roots Cuisine is growing  and has moved to a new address to reflect its nonprofit status.

Looking forward to seeing you there and thanks for visiting…

Ackees. Coconuts. Ortaniques. Otaheite Apples. Star apples (yum!). Naseberries (yum! yum!) Scotch Bonnets (yum! yum! yum!). Saltfish with yam. Boiled breadfruit. Curried Kidneys (Trinidad-style. “Remember you must burn that curry.”). Saltfish fritters. Jerk. June Plum juice. Coconut water. Ginger Beer. Red Stripe. White rum.

And that’s only three days…

Nwaka with yams

“…next time we make some okro soup or cow foot and tripe wit’ somethin’ like gari.  You like gari, Angel?  Maybe some fufu.  What do you think?”

What do I think?  Well, I don’t know and I didn’t when he asked me.  Having begun to explore the food of Africa in order to better understand the food of Diaspora has taken me places I’ve been pretty unhappy to go, but I’ve done it for the sake of my passion…my passion for food, that is.  At the time of this question it was passion for a man that compelled me to further explore the tastes, smells, and ingredients of West Africa.  A place  that is as ingrained in my DNA as the smooth reddish tone of my grandfather’s skin and the lush, thickness of my grandmother’s hair.  The funny thing is I never known any of them, but I feel them with me everyday .

So when He would ask me, as He often did, “What do you think?” I often didn’t know what to say, but usually I thought to my American self “cow foot…tripe…stockfish, dude, I will soooo pass.”  I realized though that I had to get past the haunting memories of the great goat and mackerel incident and expand my cooking and eating repertoire to include fiery stew, egusi soup, and maybe even a little cow foot. Love is the greatest of motivators, isn’t it?

Plantains: Cousins to the banana—think of it as the vegetable banana—they are delicious fried, boiled, with or without plenty of garlic or onions.  They are eaten throughout Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean, and they are nutrient-packed alternative to potatoes.  I have managed to convince myself that deep fried plantains (tostones) are actually a healthy alternative to french fries.  Just work with me here…  Fried then mashed with loads of garlic and bacon they are the main ingredients in Puerto Rican mofongo.

Okra: Appreciating okra can be a challenge, particularly for those with food texture issues, like myself.  I am sad that I can’t eat it without advanced preparation*, because I really like the flavor.  Throughout Africa and the Americas people actually like the slime.  It is said to be the perfect, natural, traditional thickening agent for soups and stews.  To avoid the sliminess altogether try deep-frying the pods.  If you don’t mind a little sliminess, sauté cut okra with onions, sweet corn, and tomatoes for a side dish.  Don’t stir too much, the more you poke and prod, the more slime.  (*Whenever I make okra with corn, tomatoes, and onions, I leave it for a day.  When I heat it the next day there is virtually no slime and it tastes so good as the flavors seem to meld overnight.)

Limes: Use them to wash and marinate seafood and poultry, squeeze over tostones (fried, green plantains), or add to homemade tropical juice drinks.

Chilies (fresh or dried): Scotch bonnets, habaneros, bird, etc.—fiery hot or mild and fruity.  Chilies are actually fruits that contain high levels of vitamin C, potassium, and iron.  Among their many health benefits, they are thought to lower blood sugar.  I am partial to scotch bonnets lately, I like the flavor.  I also like ajices.  I think that aji peppers are cayenne.

Cilantro: I really think that the flavor of cilantro defies description but dramatically changes the flavor of any dish to which it is added.  I read somewhere that for most people there is no in between for most people–they either love it or hate it.  I happen to love it and think that it is a must for the diasporal larder.  It is used in African cooking and along with onions, green pepper, and garlic; it is one of the key ingredients in the sofrito that flavors the cuisines of the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Cuba.  It can also be chopped and added to lettuce to boost the flavor and nutritional value of green salads.

Malanga: This is a tuber actually I read that it is an underground stem.  Is that not the same as a tuber?  It is magical.  You can’t believe the taste, which is nutty and buttery without the nuts or buttery.  It is, I believe, taro root.  In Central America and Colombia it is known as otoe. I believe it is called cocoyam throughout West Africa, and here in the United States it is known as taro .  Originating in Central and South America, it spread to Africa where it is used as a replacement for yam or cassava in the making of fufu.   It is apparently one of the world’s most hypoallergenic foods and can be eaten boiled, fried, mashed, etc. like potatoes.  It is has brown, hairy skin like true yams and creamy, white flesh with light purple streaks.  Try it immediately if you haven’t already.  Malanga can be found at Latin, Caribbean, and African markets.

Mandioca: It is also known as cassava or yuca, but I love the name mandioca, it’s the name by which I first came to know it and it really just rolls of the tongue, doesn’t it?  It is a tuber with a unique, somewhat creamy flavor.  I remember eating fried mandioca, boiled mandioca, mashed mandioca, even alfajores made from mandioca flour when I was an exchange student in Paraguay, which is where I acquired a taste for the stuff initially.  Fried, boiled, mashed, it’s good stuff.  It’s also a staple throughout West and Central Africa and the Caribbean.

Beans: The diasporal pantry should be stocked with different varieties from the various food traditions of the Diaspora like black, white, pinto, kidney, pigeon peas (gandules),  garbanzo beans (chick peas), and black-eyed peas.  Cooked with smoked or salt cured meats or fish, beans are a staple.

Oils: Peanut, coconut, palm.  Most of us are familiar with peanut oil and wouldn’t fry up a chicken without it but the others are just as useful.  Palm oil has a distinctive flavor and is prized throughout West Africa for the reddish orange color it imparts to the dishes to which its added.  Don’t be afraid of the saturated fat (in fact, I’ve read these oils are not unhealthy at all.  In fact palm oil is an excellent source of carotene).
Everything in moderation.

Whole Grains (Rice, Corn meal, Couscous, Millet, Cracked Wheat): whole grains are an important part of the African diet.  Millet, sorghum, corn, wheat, and rice are all indispensable.  Fonio is a grain indigenous to West Africa that once took the place of rice at the West African table.  In the Diaspora, particularly in the Americas, environmental conditions have made rice, corn, and to a lesser extent, wheat the primary grains associated with the food and cooking of people of African descent.  I haven’t branched out quite as far in this area as I’d like but I can say I always keep two varieties of rice on hand:  long-grain white and basmati; I’m hoping one day to sample indigenous African varieties and indulge in a little South Carolina rice cookery.

These are but a few suggestions; there are many more ingredients that have helped to bring the sweet and savory of the African Diaspora into my own kitchen.  More to come in Part II…

The hungry bunny

This picture has nothing to do with anything, I just wanted any excuse to post it…Now on to what’s happening in the blogosphere…

The round up:

Cynthia Bertelsen at  Gherkins & Tomatoes,  discusses the paradox of Palm Oil and shares some stunning pictures of its production process.

Over at My Caribbean Food, an inaugural post waxes nostalgic about the beauty of the Jamaican countryside and the “orgasmic” taste of fresh ackee.

Black-eyed peas in Afro-Mexican cuisine with Rachel Laudan.

Betumi.com’s Fran Osseo-Assare tackles the question of cultural, ethnic, and (mostly) racial authenticity in the study of African food.

And in translation…
Guy Everard Mbarga’s Noirs d’Amerique Latine, you’ll even see two of my articles translated into French!

Happy reading!!

As a child living alternately in Poughkeepsie and Houston, Chef Roble began his career in his family’s kitchen at the tender age of 11, but then the real focus of his efforts was eating.  The realization soon dawned, however, that to eat, one needed to know how to cook. So, out of high school he headed to the CIA-Hyde Park and then began earning his stripes in kitchens in and around NYC. Soon the entrepreneurial bug bit and he struck out on his own with his Brooklyn-based catering and personal chef business and Internet (soon-to-be prime time) cooking show “What’s Really Cooking?” You can view the trailer here. As a child in an African-American Somali household his tastes and cooking included everything from fried chicken and potato salad to sambusas and spaghetti served with bananas. The hip-hop aesthetic of his show and its home on Myspace are both noteworthy and seemingly capable of expanding the palates of swaths of hip hop heads (always a good thing in my view!). Here’s what he had to say…

You say the focus of your cooking is comfort food with a global perspective, can you expound? And as a CIA graduate, are we talking mashed potatoes and meatloaf, two American comfort classics, or cassoulet and ribollita, two French and Italian “comfort” classics respectively?

My focus is comfort food…comfort food with a global perspective anywhere around the world. My goal really is technique, teaching technique. When people find things approachable, they are confident enough to recreate what they see on the show.

What style of cooking/cuisine is your favorite? How does it influence your cooking?

I don’t have a favorite. I explore different cuisines in research phases.I will focus on eating, studying, or cooking one kind of food over a period of time to get ideas and to see how flavors, ingredients, etc. blend and work together. It gives me ideas.

You are from NYC and admittedly heavily steeped in hip-hop—music and lifestyle. As wildly artistic as the scene can be it also springs from cultures that are fairly conservative… [U]rban environments—the ‘hood specifically, seemingly the source of your primary audience—can be pretty closed in spite of the extreme diversity that exists there, particularly in places like NYC where, ironically, people are not exposed to new things and often relatively hesitant to try them. Do you try to share new types of food, ingredients, ways of cooking through your show and your catering company, in your quest to simplify cooking? Is that a goal of yours? For example would you consider putting your own spin on a cassoulet or raclette or something like that, as a way to introduce something new or expand the palettes of your friends, fans, and family. Have you found it difficult to get people tasting and eating new things or do you think your approach loosens people up a bit?

My goal is to be an ambassador of food and cooking to the Hip Hop Generation and beyond. You have to ease people into it and give them things they’re familiar with so I’m trying to present classics but modernize and simplify them. But I do want to challenge people’s ideas, people who are not very adventurous…this is changing with young people. You know, blacks 10-15 years ago wouldn’t have eaten things like sashimi. I think hip hop has influenced people and helped open their minds, especially in the ‘hood. People are being exposed to new things through the music, they lyrics, and now they are more open to it, which is good for me. You know raw oysters, clams, didn’t do that growing up…Yes, challenging people’s ideas, opening minds, that’s the key.

Now the hip hop/Myspace thing. I feel like that runs the risk of being gimmicky and possibly pigeonholing you. What’s your take on that?

Not at all. Not gimmicky. I have a DJ with me on the show, but it’s not about a show. It’s just the way I live my life, the way my friends live their lives, it’s in everything I do. So it’s not gimmicky and it can’t limit me because it’s who I am. It’s that hip hop aesthetic, like you said earlier. In terms of Myspace, my goal is to, like I said, challenge people’s ideas and be an ambassador to the hip hop generation and the best way to reach that demographic is where they are and that is Myspace. It’s really Myspace more so than Facebook or Twitter. On Myspace, I have my cooking videos, recipes, links. It’s my primary presence and people can connect with me right there.

You are of Somali and African American heritage, do the flavors or cooking styles/techniques of these cuisines find their way into your repertoire more frequently than others? If so, give a couple of examples. Can you talk a little bit about how the two Somali and African American styles of cooking were blended in your house growing up?

First, Somali food is close to Indian and Italian. Indian in the use of certain ingredients like curries and certain herbs and Italian because there was a huge influence during the time of Italian colonial occupation in Italy. People can’t believe it but we eat spaghetti with bananas. The spaghetti is made with a kind of Bolognese sauce and served with bananas and you eat them together and it’s crazy but the flavors complement each other really well. I wouldn’t serve spaghetti without it and everyone I’ve served it to is apprehensive at first but then sees how good the combination is together. All Somalis eat the dish this way. In terms of a strictly Somali dish that is always a hit, I’d have to say sambusas I describe them to people as an East African eggroll type of thing. I fill them with curried chicken, basmati rice, or even beef. It’s simple and helps introduce flavors to a new audience.

Now I’ll put you on the spot, I’m going to give you five ingredients shared by diasporal cuisines. Can you develop a simple recipe based on them? Think of it as something a bit like the five questions segment on “Inside the Actors Studio.” Preferably it should only include the five ingredients but if it includes other things it should be simple…Everything is open to your own style/interpretation. Here are your ingredients: ripe plantains, chilies (your choice), tomatoes, bacon, collards.

Well, first I would fry the plantains and season them with salt. I would then dice the bacon chopped the chilies. The bacon would go into a pan to fry to render the fat and then I’d saute the collards in the fat with a bit of vinegar and a touch of sugar to balance the acidity. A quick, simple meal that balances smokiness, heat/spice, and acidity.

Is there anything else you want to share?

Yes. Things are in the works by summer to have the show “What’s Really Cooking?” on a major cable network. I can’t give specific details, but I’m looking forward to things. In the meantime people can head to my Myspace page and check out my cooking videos and a PSA I did promoting clean water. At the site people can download recipes and shopping lists too for any recipe they might be interested in. Well, great, thank you. We’ll look for you this summer!

If you have questions or comments for Chef Roble you can contact him at: info [AT] what’sreallycooking [DOT] com.

Rachel Finn, copyright 2009

So, I was doing a search for websites on African American food, using that search term specifically, and essentially came up with nothing.  Most of  the entries ended up being redirected to sites about soul food, which while encompassed under the umbrella of African American food is really, it seems, more of a concept than anything else that conjures images of black folks dancing, singing, and eating chicken, at least for me.  I think the reason I have a problem with that term is that  it tends to force the food that African Americans eat into a box that has no room for the sheer diversity of  ingredients, techniques, or regions that exist, ultimately leading people (most notably African Americans themselves) to accept/believe that all African Americans eat is fried chicken or catfish (and we only eat catfish and occasionally fried shrimp), greens, biscuits, chitlins, candied yams, and, of course, peach cobbler for dessert.  In the summer, we can throw in some barbecue, but otherwise, forget it.  Of course all of this ish is delicious but that’s beside the point.*

I’ve already discussed in an earlier post, how this myth is debunked by the late, great Edna Lewis in her seminal The Taste of Country Cooking. The creation of soul food as a concept in and of itself came to be in Amiri Baraka’s 1962 essay “Soul Food.”  I am simplifying (mostly because I’m feeling lazy right now), but like most things culturally African American the concept made it to the mainstream and the script was flipped until we ourselves began believing that the dishes mentioned above were all with which we could fill our tables and our bellies.  Sigh.

But I have digressed far further than I meant to…

So let me get back on track.  Alright.  I took a peek at a few of these websites and found that every one of them had one or more recipes linked to Mama, Big Mama, etc.  There is “Mama’s Fried Catfish” and the enticing “Slap Yo Momma Meatloaf” both at www.soulfoodcookbook.com and a recipe for “Mama’s Pecan Pie” at www.washingtonpost.com, just to name a few, but this is just on the web.  I have an entire book called Soul Food by Sheila Ferguson that has recipes with titles like: Roast Pheasant with Wild Rice Stuffin’ (emphasis on the stuffin’) and lines like:  “It’s that shur-’nuf everlovin’ downhome, stick-to-your-ribs kinda food that keeps you glued to your seat long after the meal is over…Yes suh!” [sic]  The book even has a whole section on how black people speak.  It was written with a British audience in mind primarily but this annoys me even more.  And I’m sure that somewhere there is an entire book of “Big Mama’s” recipes floating around somewhere.  I have to say that I do not have a Big Mama.  I have a feeling that if I had ever called my Grandmother that, she would have looked at me like I was crazy and let me know the bid’ness, like the time I asked her why she never baked any cookies.  Needless to say, I never questioned her domesticity again.  

Doris Witt wrote a great book exploring all of this called: Black Hunger: Soul Food In America.  I recommend it to anyone interested in the topic.

Maybe I am all fired up over nothing, because yes, this is a pattern of speech among some black folks, and yes, as with any culture mothers and grandmothers are usually held in the highest esteem when it comes to cooking but…Why? Why “Slap Yo Momma Meatloaf?” Why?  I will never understand this.  And why do they always have to be big?  We’re not all big…damn.

*I can speak with authority on everything except chitlins.  I haven’t ever tasted them.  When my great Grandmother was still alive she once tried to bribe me, offering me $20 to take just one bite and I still wouldn’t do it.

Cuisine of the African Diaspora Woven Into Chicago’s Neighborhoods 

Enjoy and please share feedback or your favorite “diasporal” spots in Chicago or your wherever you are!

Anyway, I am beginning to think more about this topic because I may be presenting my first every academic paper on the connections between North and West African cuisine.  I was made aware of the opportunity by Fran Osseo-Asare who runs Betumi.com who is organizing a panel on West African food for the 2009 AFHVS/ASFS conference, which is the joint meeting of the Agriculture, Food and Human Values Society and the Association for the Study of Food and Society.  I still don’t know if the proposal has been accepted but I’ll be finding out soon. Whether it is accepted or not, this gives me the motivation/opportunity to delve into the topic, which is something I’ve been meaning to do for a while now.

It also gives me the opportunity to post a picture of my beloved Algerian pastries.  So, stay tuned and…

Yum!!

I just had a revelation.  And, like most revelations it was borne of ideas, facts, concepts that have been swimming around in my head that have obvious connections.  I woke up at 5:00 and began thinking about greens, specifically the efo I had recently at a Nigerian restaurant here in Chicago called B & Q Afro Root Cuisine while doing research for an upcoming Chicago Sun-Times feature on the food of the African Diaspora in Chicago.  The owners are a wonderful couple named Briggs and Queen Imarhiagbe who have agreed to let me come and learn to cook in their kitchen (!) and the restaurant is welcoming and comfortable.  The food was great and restored my shaken faith in African food, which is probably an unfair statement since I haven’t eaten lots of it and what I did eat was, heartbreakingly bad, for me at least.  I do know enough to recognize that that I may have just been exposed to the work of some really bad cooks, but I can dissect that later, once I’ve gone through the healing process.

Anyway, efo, is finely shredded spinach cooked in a tomato/bell pepper/chili puree that, according to my research, can be flavored with meat, smoked fish, and dried, ground shrimp or crayfish (these last three ingredients are common seasonings in the West African kitchen).  It can be  served with chunks of the meat and smoked fish for what seems to be a real down home version.

What did all of this remind me of?  The greens I grew up with, of course that were stewed with smoked or salted pork–neck bones, ham hocks, and sometimes chunks of salt pork–onions, and red pepper.  Delicious.  Spinach for African Americans does not fall into the category of greens.  Spinach is spinach and generally reserved for steaming, sauteeing, or creaming.  In my family, as is the case with most African Americans, greens meant a mix of kale, mustard and turnip.

In my house, the combination was prized for the balance of flavor and texture as turnip greens alone got a little bit too soft for us, and mustard greens were considered a bit too bitter.  My father was just convinced that a mix of all offered the best flavor.  The other standard option was a big pot of collards, always the perfect texture and flavor on their own, in my opinion.  They are a bit more toothsome than the other varieties and I love that.  Usually served with plates of deviled eggs, tomato slices and sprigs of green onion, there is nothing better!

It is an obvious connection and one that I actually made while sampling the efo.  Now, in the context of all this I am considering my new favorite way to enjoy greens.  Raw.  I picked up the method during a short stint I spent learning to cook  Brazilian food in a restaurant.  This method, consists of cut collards into a very fine chiffonade and tossing them with thinly sliced red onions (I add a few other things–my secret).  Et voilà, there you have it.  The mixture is often sauteed or braised and then called couve mineira or couve à mineira but I love the raw version best.  In either form, Brazilians often eat it as an accompaniment to  feijoada completa.

I am now looking forward to the summer to try some of the things that my parents spoke of gathering and eating as children:  poke salat (poke salad), dandelion greens, beet greens, etc.  I’ve tried the beet and dandelion greens but I am on a quest to find poke salat.  I’m betting I can find it  at a farmer’s market somewhere or maybe it is growing right under my nose.