Tastes from Africa

Appears in
Saka Saka: Adventures in African cooking, south of the Sahara
Saka Saka

By Anto Cocagne and Aline Princet

Published 2022

  • About
To understand how African cuisines have evolved, we first need to look back at the continent’s history.
What did people eat in Africa before colonisa tion? It’s a difficult mystery to solve. Ancient Africa did not leave any written texts, and because recipes were handed down orally, many have unfortunately been buried with the ancestors.
In 5000 BC, there was a series of migrations of the Bantu people on the continent. The Bantus were constantly on the move, taking their recipes with them and adapting them systematically to the local situation where they were. In addition, the Arab presence in Africa and the ensuing spread of Islam to these regions pre-dates the European presence. This is how the Arab-Berbers brought couscous to West Africa. The Arabs started trading with the East, which probably contributed to the introduction of several spices.