The African Gourmet: African Cuisine, Folktales and Cultural Stories

Herbalists Ancient Knowledge Herbalism is one of the main methods used to treat various illnesses in traditional African medicine. Medicinal African Bush Tea Recipe Explore and Understand Africa Through Her Food and Culture More Plant Guides: Main Hub • Cancer Bush • Top Plants • 15 Herbs The continent of Africa has a wealth of indigenous herbs and plants such as African bush tea used for herbal treatments. Therapeutic African Bush Tea   African Recipes by African Gourmet:   Therapeutic bush tea has a bitter flavor and is used for medicinal purposes to treat stomach problems. Prep time: 5 min Cook time: 5 min Total time: 10 min Ingredients Desired amount of Rooibos (pronounced roy-bose) bush tea leaves Boiling water Honey or sugar optional Directions When making herbal African bush tea use a tea strainer. The tea strainer eliminates the need to strain off leaves later.  Add your desired amount of bush tea leaves to a tea strai...

Deadly Female Insects. Just how deadly is the deadliest insect in the world? Of all disease-transmitting insects, the mosquito is the greatest menace, spreading malaria, dengue and yellow fever, which together are responsible for several million deaths and hundreds of millions of cases every year. The female Aedes aegypti mosquito is one of the deadliest animals in the world causing major diseases such as the West Nile Virus, Malaria, Yellow Fever, Chikungunya, Zika and Dengue. Despite the emergence of some 29 new diseases in the last 20 years, there is still a lack of national and international political will and resources to develop and support the systems necessary to detect them and stop their spread. Without doubt, diseases as yet unknown but with the potential to be the malaria of tomorrow, lurk in the shadows. Deadly female insects in Africa.    Mosquitoes are one of the deadliest animals in the world. The Aedes aegypti or Aedes mosquito is jet black, with w...

Whole Nother Level of Understanding African Proverbs Hard to understand People say they want to read you, to understand you, to see a side of you no one else gets to see; but they never do because you're on a whole nother level of understanding. And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music Explore and Understand Africa Through Her Food and Culture The reason that you can sometimes be hard to understand is that we are all unique creatures.   Whole Nother Level of Understanding African Proverbs We are not obliged to answer a village message. The hen cannot lay eggs of crocodiles and crocodiles cannot lay eggs of hens. One who is bound to stray follows a defined path. Eggs and stones should not dance with one another. No matter how much a person changes goats will never lay eggs. You should not sleep outside just because someone else did it and was lucky. There is no king who is not gossiped abou...

Herbs can improve digestion, stimulate appetite, preserve foods. Traditional African herbal medicines may help to treat many of the symptoms of opportunistic infections that are part of HIV AIDS. Add caption Best Traditional African Herbal Medicines for People Living With HIV AIDS Explore and Understand Africa Through Her Food and Culture A list of herbs and the beneficial effects by people living with HIV AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa and how to use herbs for traditional African Medicines. HIV AIDS is not a traditional African illness and so far, there is no hard evidence to believe that traditional African medicines can treat HIV and cure AIDS . The effects may not be the same for all people. People can try these herbs and spices in moderation and decide for themselves whether they are helpful. Remember that all herbs should be used in moderate amounts. Exceeding these amounts may cause problems and have a toxic effect; moreover, the funct...

Lesotho military coups, since  1991, the African kingdom of Lesotho has been in political crisis withstanding seven military coups. Lesotho seven military coups from 1991-2017 Explore and Understand Africa Through Her Food and Culture Military coups in Lesotho History. January 15, 1986, General Justin Lekhanya, the Head of the Lesotho Army, ousted Lesotho Prime Minister Chief Leabua Jonathan in a military coup. Jonathan had been prime minister since 1966 and gained executive political control over Lesotho when the king's power was limited in 1970. Sixty members of the African National Congress (ANC) were deported from Lesotho to Zambia after the coup. February 1990, a power struggle had developed between Lekhanya and King Moshoeshoe II and the king was forced to go into exile in the United Kingdom. In April 1991, Lekhanya was removed from power in a military coup led by Colonel Elias Tutsoane Ramaema. Ramaema announced a schedule for Lesotho's return to ...

True friends never lie If a friend can't trust you, if someone doesn't trust you, that means they are truly untrustworthy. Lies the Maiden Told African Folktale Explore and Understand Africa Through Her Food and Culture What's it like to be friends with someone you know you can't trust? Five maidens one day took their baskets and went to the river to fish.  One of their numbers caught many fishes, while the other four caught none at all.  And they said to their more fortunate friend: "Let us have a few of your fishes; you have so many, and we have none at all."  "No!" said she, "what I have caught I keep for myself.  And they all started for home.  They had gone quite a distance when the maiden who had caught the many fishes discovered, that she had lost her arm-ring charm.  And she asked her companions to go along back with her and help her find it.  "No!" said they.  "Ask your fishes to go along with you. You know that we ar...

Queenstown South Africa, Apartheid killer rampage. Black South Africans were not allowed to live but only to work in the all white South African town of Queenstown and if you were lucky, you would not be murdered by a serial killer hired by the town to protect white life and white property. Queenstown South Africa apartheid killer rampage happened when all white South African town of Queenstown hired a killer to protect white property. Explore and Understand Africa Through Her Food and Culture Apartheid; blacks do not want equality, they want to be on top and that is unacceptable. Queenstown is a town in Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. The town lies in an upper valley of the Great Kei River. It has a distinctive hexagonal shape, designed by its founder, Sir George Cathcart, as a precaution against attack. Queenstown was founded in 1853 intended to be a military outpost designed to protect the British subjects from attack during the time of the Frontier wars. The...

Apricot Potato Cake is a delightful dessert that combines the flavors of apricots and potatoes to create a moist and flavorful cake.  Apricot Potato Cake offers a unique combination of flavors and textures, with the natural sweetness of apricots blending harmoniously with the creamy potato base.   South Africa is known for its vibrant agricultural industry, and apricots are among the fruits grown in the country. Apricot cultivation in South Africa is concentrated mainly in the Western Cape region, particularly in the areas of Ceres, Wolseley, and Montagu.  These regions provide suitable growing conditions with their Mediterranean-like climate, characterized by warm, dry summers and cool winters. South African apricots are known for their high quality and excellent flavor.  The apricot season in South Africa typically runs from November to February, with peak harvest occurring in December and January. You can find fresh South African apricots in local markets and s...

Giant African snails can grow as large as an adult’s fist. Freakish Giant African Snails Live on All Continents Except Antarctica Scientists call the giant African snail ( Lissachatina fulica ) one of the world’s most damaging invasive species. It eats at least 500 plant types — from breadfruit and cassava to cocoa, papaya, peanuts, beans, and melons. What the Giant African Land Snail Looks Like The shell is usually reddish-brown with faint yellow vertical stripes, but color changes with diet and habitat. In Africa it lives on forest edges, riverbanks, shrublands, farms, gardens, wetlands, and even urban areas. Giant African snail feeding on papaya. Behavior and Life Cycle These snails are nocturnal and hide underground during the day. They are solitary — even after laying eggs there is no parental care. Their mouth contains a radula , a tongue-like organ lined with tiny teeth to scrape food. They are hermaphrodites (possessing both mal...

Smiling faces in Africa African proverbs and quotes. A very ancient African method prescribed for sadness is smiling joyful laughter. Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing. The teeth are smiling but is the heart? Today, give a stranger one of your smiles. It might be the only sunshine they see all day. Eritrean child smiles for the camera. The smile on my face doesn't mean my life is perfect, it just means I appreciate what I have and what God has blessed me with. Mursi girl in Omo, Ethiopia smiling. A smile confuses an approaching frown.   Ghana school boys smile. The world always looks brighter from behind a smile. Smiling village women from Ouagadougou, Kadiogo, Burkina Faso returning home from a community well with containers full of water. Cover your mouth when you cough. Never cover it when you smile. Sierra Leone smile. A smile is the light in the window of your face that tells people you’re at home. B...

When somebody suddenly leaves you. Regretful tears are shed over graves for words left unsaid. Ancestral spirits talk to you everyday guiding, protecting and soothing their loved ones. With loved ones who have died, you can not pick up the phone and communicate. By Chic African Culture We all want to feel comforted knowing that the spirits of our loved ones are attempting to connect with us. Our ancestors like to place things over and over again in our path that they what us to know. 15 messages the spirit of your ancestors want you to know. Take no notice of the stupid things people say. For a good appetite, there is no hard bread. Plenty breed pride. Two in distress makes sorrow less. You are suffering the consequences now. The person who is not patient cannot eat well-cooked dishes. If you heal the leg of a person, do not be surprised if he uses to run away from you. The one who does not ask does not learn. Beauty does not produce food. ...

Africa's Urban Populations and Six Biggest Cities In Africa Six Biggest Cities In Africa Chic African Culture Africa's urban populations​ are booming, six of the 10 countries with the highest urbanization rates in the world in 2013 are in Sub-Saharan Africa. Six Biggest Cities In Africa Country City Population Nigeria Lagos 21 million Egypt Cairo 20.4 million Democratic Republic of Congo Kinshasa 13.3 million Angola Luanda 6.5 million Kenya Nairobi 3.5 million Somalia Mogadishu 2.1 million Africa's urban populations​ are booming By Chic African Culture Sub-Saharan Africa is urbanizing, but at lower levels of per capita GDP than other regions. Urban areas in Africa comprise 472 million people. That number will double over the next 25 years as more people are pushed to cities from the countrysid...

ECOWAS Established on May 28, 1975, learn all about the Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, History, 15 Members, and Core Policies. Economic Community of West African States founded in 1975 Headquartered in Abuja, Nigeria Explore and Understand Africa Through Her Food and Culture About the ECOWAS ECOWAS History Established on May 28, 1975 via the treaty of Lagos, ECOWAS is a 15-member regional group with a mandate of promoting economic integration in all fields of activity of the constituting countries.  The treaty of Lagos was originally touted as an economic initiative, but emerging political events led to its revision and therewith the expansion of scope and powers in 1993. The region’s cultural, linguistic and ecological diversity presents both opportunities and challenges for the integration process.  The longing to combine forces politically and economically has always been recognized as a step forward in the desire to engender co-prosperity in t...

24 hours of Darkness There were regions across the African continent when the night lasted for more than 24 hours. Great storytelling of the short story began in Africa with the African folktale also known as African folklore. Folklore storytelling is the most ancient art form of the African Community. Just as someone expresses their ideas and the form of music, painting, dance and sculpture folklore takes the ideas of an ancient story and creates with words a picture that enchants the listener with a rich auditory environment. In Africa, in the earliest times before there were pictures or written words there was the African folktale. For centuries, stories were passed down by word of mouth from one generation to the next. As Africans traveled across the African continent, they took their stories with them. In this African folklore short story, there were regions across the African continent when the night lasted for more than 24 hours. What is it like to live in a place with 24 h...

Best vegetarian stew cassava leaves recipe. Cassava Leaves Recipe With Homemade Curry Sauce has everything you love about vegetarian African cooking. Cooking Cassava Stew With Homemade Curry Sauce African Recipes by Chic African Culture. The cassava leaves recipe is a quick and easy African food meal to make during the weekday. The fragrant eight-spice curry powder recipe adds a unique flavor to the cassava stew dish. Prep time: 15 min Cook time: 35 min Total time: 50 min Cassava Stew Ingredients 1 large cassava peeled and diced 3 green bananas cut in half 2 medium carrots, chopped 1 medium onion, chopped 1 green pepper seeded and diced 1 large red tomato, diced 1 large green tomato, diced 1 teaspoon minced garlic 2 tablespoons homemade ground curry powder 2 cups coconut milk Water for boiling Homemade Curry Powder Spice Recipe Ingredients 1 teaspoon coriander 1 teaspoon ground caraway 1 teaspoon of black pepper 1 teaspoon of red pepper 6 teaspoons of turmeric 1 teaspoon of clov...

Listen to African Elder Proverbs. There are many proverbs that speak about the value of elders in the African society, are you listening to what they say? Shhhh... Listen! Do You Hear The Elders Speaking To You? In Africa, proverbs are not usually attributed to any particular individuals, but collectively to the ancestors, the wise men and women of old. In most cases, it is not known who composed a particular proverb. But whether known or not, all proverbs are credited to the elders of old.  African proverbs contain observations and good counsel against undesirable wickedness like anger, backbiting, greed, ingratitude, laziness, lying, pride, procrastination, and selfishness.  African proverbs usually have two meanings: the literal or primary meaning, and the deeper or real meaning. The real meaning of African proverbs is not always apparent. There is nothing more disgraceful than an old man who has no other honor but his age. - African Elder Proverb Wisdom is ...

Squatters waterfront community Otodo Gbame on the Lagos lagoon is an ancestral fishing s suffering violent evictions by the Nigerian government. Lagos Nigeria Ministry of Justice on three separate occasions, set fire to and demolished the ancestral fishing village of Otodo Gbame. Otodo Gbame evictees were suffering fire on the water in wooden boats on the Lagos Lagoon fleeing from tear gas and bullets. No Squatters Rights on Nigerian Waterfront Property. Otodo Gbame quatters claim rights over the spaces they have squatted by virtue of occupation and ancestral rights, rather than paper legal ownership.  Officials of the Lagos Task Force made up of Lagos State agencies, forcibly evicted Otodo Gbame squatters on November 9 and 10, 2016, where more than 30,000 residents were forcibly evicted. The task force used fire and bulldozers to demolish the houses on the waterfront slum on the Lagos lagoon. According to the Justice and Empowerment Initiatives (JEI), a Lagos-based g...