The origin of planting and growing grapes in North and South Africa is unknown. Grape vines were planted in Mediterranean climates of South Africa around 1650's and North African countries of Morocco, Tunisia, and Algeria produced 60% of the worlds wine until the late 1950's.

In North Africa, Morocco, Tunisia, and Algeria played an important role in the history of wine. Algeria's vinicultural history dates back to its settlement by the Phoenicians and continued under Algeria's rule by the Roman Empire. Winemaking continued in Morocco, Tunisia, and Algeria until the Muslim conquests of North Africa in the 7th and 8th centuries.

The main wine-producing areas in Morocco are located in the Atlas Mountains region, Benslimane and Meknès.  The main wine-producing areas in Algeria is located in the provinces of Aïn Témouchent, Mascara, Mostaganem, Sidi Bel Abbès, and Tlemcen. The main wine-producing areas in Tunisia are located in Arianah, Nabul and Sousse regions. Cabo Verde Chã das Caldeiras in the crater of the volcano Pico do Fogo region also produces excellent export-quality wines.

Many Muslim government officials thought it was unacceptable for an Islamic country to be so economically dependent on alcohol production and encouraged vineyard owners to convert their land into other agricultural crops such as cereal or table grapes.

More than 80% of table grape production in South Africa occurs in the Western Cape region.Popular grape varieties in South Africa are Barlinka, Bonheur, Dauphine, Waltham Cross, Alphonse Lavallée, Red Globe, La Rochelle, Sunred Seedless, Thompson Seedless, and Sultanas. Some grapes contain as high as 30% of sugar or as low as 10%.

Chenin Blanc is the most widely planted wine grape variety in the Cape, with increasing quality of both dry and sweet styles. Other major white varieties include Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, and Viognier.

Grapes are a fruit, true berries with small, round to oblong and consisting of four seeds. Berries are often covered with a greyish, bluish, or whitish waxy coating or bloom that is easily rubbed off, having a fine layer of wax on the surface. The skin of the grape is thin and is the source of the anthocyanin compounds that give rise to red, blue, purple and black to dark purple colored grapes.

Green and yellow skinned grape cultivars are of ten termed white grapes. Most grapes are woody, climbing vines. Grapes can be eaten fresh or dried or enjoyed in the form of juice and wine.

Did you know? Muscadine grapes differ from other grape cultivars because it has thick skin, which is sometimes bitter and tough. The fruit of the muscadine ripens one by one and detaches from the plant at maturity. The berries detach from the vine with a dry stem scar unlike bunch grapes, which remain attached to the cluster at maturity.

Together we build awareness that boost harmony, education, and success, below are more links to articles you will find thought provoking.

1. African Country Names Your Saying Wrong
2. What do Waist Beads Symbolize in Africa?
3. About African Healers and Witchdoctors
4. Hurricanes are Angry African Ancestors
5. Highest Temperature and Lowest Temperature in Africa
6. About African Night Running

You will love the taste of Grandpa's turtle soup and making his turtle soup recipe is healthy and easy.

Turtle soup is soup made from the meat of turtles with spices and fresh vegetables. Our classic turtle soup recipe stewed Tanzania style, like they serve off the river and lakes throughout Africa. 

African ancestor food knowledge: Now that intercommunication between distant nations has become easier and frequent, the rural and city-dweller of Africa commands greater attention to culinary art. One art of cooking Africa offers is how to cook turtle soup. 

How the catch and clean snapping turtles for eating.

Catching and cleaning snapping turtles is easy. In Africa they live in a wide variety of marine habitats: large creeks, rivers, swamps, marshes, and lagoons. Fishing, grabbing them by the tail or the back of their shell is the usual method for catching snapping turtles. Snapping turtle used for eating must come from clean waterways.

To begin the process of cleaning a snapping turtle, cut the turtle's head off and hang the turtle upside down tied to a post to let the blood drain out. Then with plyers, muscles and a sharp hunting knife pull the skin off the turtle, parboiling with help loosen the skin for easier peeling.

The shell underneath the turtle is called the plastron, between this shell and the hardtop shell is soft joint easy to cut away. Remove the plastron with a sharp cutting hunting knife and remove the entrails.

Then cut away the meat, fat is yellow, detach from the meat but you can save this fat to favor other dishes. Cut up turtle meat just as you would turkey or chicken. Soak the turtle meat in clean water for 12-24 hours changing the water every 4 hours.

Boneless snapping turtle meat can be fried or stewed, however low heat and slow cooking methods have the best cooking results. The four legs and the tail of the snapping turtle are dark meat, the neck and back straps are white meat.   

Snapping turtles can average 10 to 12 inches in upper shell length and weigh between 15 to 25 pounds. Two pounds of boneless turtle meat cost between $38 and $50. Turtle meat is healthy with one cup of turtle meat has around 220 calories, 33 grams of protein and 2 grams of saturated fat.

Turtle Soup Recipe From Our Kitchen

Ingredients
2 cups boneless snapping turtle meat
4 cups vegetable stock
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons salted butter
4 stalks chopped celery
1 medium chopped white onion
1 medium chopped red onion
3 diced carrots
2 medium red tomatoes
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon freshly minced parsley leaves
2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground ginger
Salt and black pepper to taste

Directions
In a large pot with a heavy lid over medium-high heat add butter, melt then add seasonings. Add flour and turtle meat stirring well until turtle meat is slightly brown. Add stock and remaining ingredients. Continue to cook over medium-high heat until the mixture boils, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 2 hours. Dish into serving bowls and enjoy The African Gourmet easy recipe of turtle soup.

More easy breakfast, lunch and dinner recipes from African Food Love to make right now so you never have to eat or prepare a boring meal again.

Sensory Preservation Manual Entry

CULTURAL CONTEXT

• Common Name: Traditional Turtle Soup
• Cultural GPS: Coastal West Africa • Riverine Communities
• Threat Level: Critical

EMOTIONAL CORE

• Soul-Taste: Reverence, Survival, Ecosystem Balance
• Memory-Load: The tension between sustenance and conservation

SENSORY MATRIX

Olfactory (Smell)
Raw: Muddy, aquatic, clean river scent. Cooking: Deep, rich broth unlike any meat. Finished: Earthy, herbal, complex aroma that speaks of river ecosystems.

Tactile (Touch)
Preparation: Smooth, cool shell; firm, gelatinous meat. Texture: Unique combination of tender meat and cartilaginous chew. Mouthfeel: Rich, velvety, substantial.

Auditory (Sound)
Preparation: Specific tapping sounds to clean shell. Cooking: Low, slow bubble of long-simmering broth. Cultural: The community discussions about sustainability.

Taste & Mouthfeel
Primary: Deep, rich, cross between fish and poultry. Unique: Gelatinous texture from cartilage and connective tissue. Cultural: The taste of environmental wisdom.

PRESERVATION NOTE - CRITICAL THREAT

This recipe documents a profound relationship between humans and their ecosystem that is rapidly disappearing. The knowledge represents centuries of understanding turtle behavior, harvesting ethics, and seasonal timing. While conservation concerns have rightly limited this practice, the cultural knowledge behind it—the deep understanding of river ecosystems, the respectful harvesting methods, the unique culinary techniques—is vanishing forever. This preservation entry captures not an endorsement of current practice, but the cultural memory of a sophisticated environmental relationship that modern conservation can learn from.

This recipe is part of an ongoing project to preserve the sensory heritage of African cuisine against cultural erosion and forgetting. Each dish is a story. Each ingredient has a memory.

More from the Sensory Preservation Manual

• The Yam's Covenant: Trust Between Human and Earth
• Mauritian Chutney: The Taste of Creative Survival
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Akan Calendar and Chieftaincy: Sacred Days and Royal Traditions

Akan symbolism and sacred timekeeping traditions.

The Akan of Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire follow the adaduanan—a 42-day calendar cycle marked by four sacred dabɔne days: Fɔdwo, Awukudae, Fofie, and Akwasidae. These days shape rituals, farming schedules, and ancestral veneration, blending timekeeping with spirituality and governance.

The Adaduanan Calendar Explained

The Akan calendar grew out of an older six-day week. Its days are:

• Fo – Council day
• Nwuna – Sleep or death day
• Nkyi – Taboo day
• Kuru – Political day
• Kwa – Rest day
• Mono – Fresh start day

Within each 42-day cycle (adaduanan: da = day, aduanan = forty), the four dabɔne sacred days appear in this rhythm:

• Fɔdwo — Day 1
• Awukudae — Day 10
• Fofie — Day 19
• Akwasidae — Day 28

Did You Know? On dabɔne days, farming stops, but hunting and gathering firewood is allowed. Funerals are forbidden, and chiefs receive no death news while libations of alcohol and food honor ancestral stools.

Fɔdwo and Fofie days hold special purification and medico-religious symbolism. Awukudae and Akwasidae are part of the adae ancestor veneration rites.

Akan People: Past and Present

Most Akan peoples live in Ghana, with others in eastern Côte d’Ivoire and parts of Togo. Major subgroups include the Asante, Fante, Akwapim, Akyem, Akwamu, Ahanta, Bono, Nzema, Kwahu, and Sefwi. Modern Ghana has long been home to Akan states tied to gold trade routes and cultural innovation.

Akan African Art Memorial Head

Akan Chieftaincy and Titles

The Akan chieftaincy system—central to governance—dates back before 1300. Chiefs arbitrate political and economic matters and receive stool names when installed. The Omanhene is the paramount ruler (often translated as “king”), while other key titles include:

• Krontihene — caretaker of land, second-in-command
• Obaatan — queenly counselor who nominates the next Omanhene
• Tufohene — warlord, head of gunners
• Adontehene — leader of the army’s front flank
• Benkumhene & Nifahene — left & right military wings
• Nkosuohene — development chief (modern honorary title)
• Nsumankwahene — spiritual head/guardian of the oracle

Chieftaincy continues alongside Ghana’s modern state. The title Nana (chief/ruler) remains a cultural anchor.

Akan people in 1930, Ghana

Explore More Akan Culture:

• African Kente Cloth Facts
• Religious Shifts in Africa
• Trade Connections Across Africa

Understanding the Akan calendar and chieftaincy deepens appreciation for Ghana’s heritage and shows how timekeeping, ritual, and leadership sustain cultural identity.

Boli is a popular street food recipe of Nigeria. Whole sweet plantains are grilled and sold on street corners or in traffic by African street hawkers.

African street food hawkers know how to grill sweet plantains perfectly.

Boli grilled sweet plantains

Boli Two Ingredients Grilled Sweet Plantains Recipe

Ingredients
4 large ripe yellow plantains
1 teaspoon salt

Directions
Peel the plantains leave whole and place on top of grill. Grill plantains over very low coals for about 5 minutes on each side. Sprinkle with salt and serve.

Plantains on sale at market in Ibadan Nigeria

The street food trade or street hawking is a very popular trade in Ibadan Nigeria and sometimes the only way for some Nigerians to make a living. Many African families rely on hawking as the sole source of income. Ibadan is the capital and most populous city of Oyo State, Nigeria. With a population of over 3 million, it is the third most populous city in Nigeria Africa.

Plantains on sale at market in Ibadan Nigeria

Plantains are an important food in West and Central Africa. They are an important ingredient of many dishes and the leaves of can be used as a source of fiber for thread, cloth string, thread or can be used as thatch and roofing due to the huge leaves that can reach up to 9 feet in length and 2 feet in width which wrap around the trunk of the plantain tree. Plantation trees can grow for 25 years producing fruit and reach heights up to 30 feet.

One hundred or more different varieties of plantain grow in Africa. Uganda is the largest producer of plantains followed by Rwanda, Ghana, Nigeria, and Cameroon. Plantain trees botanical name Musa paradisiaca produce starchy cooking fruit however plantains are distinguished from bananas by their fruit which, although from the naked eye look very similar to bananas, are actually longer, firmer and possess a higher starch content and thicker skin.

Plantains are eaten as a vegetable cooked prior to eating, treated in much the same way as potatoes and with a similar neutral flavor and texture when the unripe fruit is cooked by steaming, boiling or frying. Green plantains are simply the younger immature stage of the plantain fruit. 

Plantains are one of the primary staple foods of West and Central Africa sometimes eaten with fish or meat. Plantains are rich in carbohydrates, vitamins A, C and B group as well as minerals such as calcium and iron. Plantains provide up to 35 percent of the total calories in the diets of Africans.