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Recipes from Central African Republic
The Central African Republic is a
landlocked country located in the heart of the African continent. 4 out of
5 people there are small farmers, raising subsistence crops to feed their
families. One staple crop that is found in much of Africa south of the
Sahara is cassava. Originally from Central and South America,
cassava was first brought to Africa by the Portuguese in the 16th
century, and was widely planted in Africa in the 19th century
as an ideal famine food, tolerating drought and insects. Cassava can be
left in the ground up to two years after maturing, without any attention
from a farmer, and will not spoil. While you can find cassava in some
Caribbean or Central American grocery stores in the U.S., it is not
commonly found in supermarkets. One product that is easy to find, however,
is tapioca, which is processed from the cassava root. Tapioca can be
bought in both a pearl and a granulated form. You can make tapioca pudding
with children and let them see and taste the raw tapioca.
Spinach Stew
Serves 6
2
small onions, chopped
2 tablespoons oil
2 tomatoes, peeled and sliced
1 green bell pepper, chopped
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2
pounds fresh spinach, chopped, or 2
10-ounce pkgs. frozen spinach
1 teaspoon salt
2 chili peppers, sliced, or ½ teaspoon
cayenne
4 tablespoons peanut butter |
In a heavy skillet or stew pot,
sauté onions in moderately hot oil until golden. Stir in tomatoes
and green pepper.
After a minute or so, add spinach,
salt and hot pepper. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for five minutes.
Thin peanut butter with several
tablespoons of warm water to make a smooth paste. Add to the pot.
Continue cooking for another 10-15 minutes, stirring frequently and
being careful not to let the mixture scorch. Add small amounts of
water as necessary so the stew does not stick to the pan.
Serve with rice or stiff porridge
(recipe below) |
| Stiff porridge
(Fufu) Serves 4-6
This recipe is an adaptation of an
African staple food, served at every meal to help stretch the meats
and vegetables.
In the Central African Republic,
this dish would usually be prepared with cassava. Every morning,
women would boil the cassava and then pound it with a large wooden
mortar and pestle. You can make this with water instead of milk, or
you can try substituting equal parts tapioca flour for the corn
meal.
1¼ cups white cornmeal
1 cup milk
Heat a cup of water to boiling in a
medium-sized saucepan. Meanwhile, in a bowl gradually add ¾ cup of
the cornmeal to the milk, stirring briskly to make a smooth paste.
Add this mixture to the boiling
water, stirring constantly. Cook for 4 or 5 minutes while adding the
remaining cornmeal. When mixture begins to pull away from the sides
of the pot and stick together, remove from heat.
Dump fufu into a lightly greased
bowl. With damp hands, shape it into a smooth ball, turning in the
bowl to help smooth it. Serve immediately.
To eat in the traditional manner,
tear off a piece of fufu and make an indentation in it with your
thumb. Use this hollow to scoop up stew or sauce from a communal
bowl. In many countries, influenced by Muslim custom, one should use
only the right hand to handle the food |
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