African Food and Art

Thank you to our latest donor, Tony. Thank you, Tony. We were able to purchase three new stainless steel pots to continue our cooking and teaching heritage.

African Hot Peppers Making Shito Pepper Sauce

List of hot peppers from Africa and how to make Shito hot pepper sauce.

Hot peppers that originated from Africa, Devil's Rib from Ghana, the African Cheeky, Fatali, Pettie Belle and Piment Curry hot-peppers from Mauritius. 

Making fiery seafood for my husband

Hot peppers that originated from Africa

Devil's Rib
An extremely hot habanero chili from Ghana. They are slightly ribbed and turn from a shiny green to bright red as they ripen. The plants are sprawling bushes that can be grown either in the ground or large pots.


Cheeky
Sea Spring Seeds selection from the Ghanaian landrace kpakpo shito, the small, roundish fruit are about 20 mm in diameter and change from lime green to orange to red as they mature. They are very hot, and their deep lobes make them look somewhat like the cheeks of a vagabond, hence the name. The plants are a tidy bush and can grow unsupported, making them perfectly suited for small or large pots and grow bags.


Fatali
A Habanero relative, this prolific plant can grow tall. The plant produces good yields of wrinkled extremely hot fruits which turn from pale green to bright yellow when mature. They have a fruity, almost citrus-like flavor making it a very attractive hot sauce.


Pettie Belle
A habanero chili selected by Sea Spring Seeds from the kpakpo shito landrace of Ghana. A high proportion of the small fruit (about 25 mm in diameter) is bell-shaped, making this variety possibly the smallest bell pepper in the world. They are hot, but measuring around 37,500 SHUs they are still one of the milder habaneros. The medium-tall, bushy plants can be grown in the ground or larger pots, though they will need support to stay upright.


Piment Curry
Mauritius pepper that is thin-fleshed, wrinkled fruit is about the size and shape of the forefinger, turning from green to red as they ripen. Mauritians like to eat this chili green, either gently fried in oil or coated in a spicy batter made from chickpea flour and deep-fried.

What makes hot peppers hot

The capsaicin in peppers causes the heat you experience while eating hot peppers. The more capsaicin in the pepper, the hotter it is. This unique, natural chemical is found prominent in the seeds of the pepper. 

 The hot pepper’s power is concentrated in the placenta, the central core of the fruit that contains the seeds, otherwise known as the pith, and the thick veins that attach the placenta to the pepper wall. 

 Removing the seeds, then, usually results in removing the placenta and veins, thus cooling the fruit’s heat.

African hot peppers


Shito Ghanaian Pepper Sauce Recipe

Shito Ghanaian pepper sauce is made with hot peppers, shrimp, fish, tomato paste and seasonings to create Ghana’s most beloved hot sauce.

Ingredients
3 medium tomatoes, chopped
10 hot peppers
1 tablespoon shrimp paste
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 medium onion, chopped
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 cup olive oil

How to make Shito Ghanaian pepper sauce.
Add all ingredients into a food processor and mix well. In a medium saucepan simmer 15 minutes on low. Add sauce to soups, stews or use as a sauce over seafood. Add all ingredients into a food processor and mix well. In a medium saucepan simmer 15 minutes on low. Add sauce to soups, stews or use as a sauce over seafood.
Read more facts and food recipes about Africa

West African Ginger Beer Recipe

Sierra Leone Fish Soup Recipe

African Countries and Capitals That Begin with M Word Search

Quick and Easy Bitter Leaf Stew Recipe

All 54 African countries have national anthems.

Chic African Culture and The African Gourmet=

Week’s Best African Culture Posts

What is the difference between ugali and fufu

Image
How to make the popular African recipes Ugali and Fufu and what is the difference.  Ugali is a starch dish in Kenya and Tanzania made of fine cornmeal cooked in boiling water into a soft dough. Fufu is a thick, dough-like West African food made by boiling then pounding a starchy vegetable such as yam, plantain, or cassava or a mixture of starchy vegetables. The main difference between fufu and ugali is fufu is boiled first then pounded while ugali is simply boiled. Ugali recipe. Easy Ugali Recipe Prep time 5 minutes Cook time 30 minutes Total time 30 minutes Ingredients 4 cups finely ground cornmeal 8 cups water Directions Heat water to boiling in a saucepan. Slowly pour cornmeal into boiling water stirring continuously. Add more cornmeal if necessary until it is thick as soft bread dough. Serve immediately with vegetables, stew, or any dish you would use a spoon with to soak up the sauce, ugali is purposely bland tasting on its own. What is the difference between ugali and
Learn More About Africa

Top 20 Largest Countries in Africa

Image
African Country by Size List. Africa Which are the top twenty largest, smallest, and territorial country in Africa by land area? 1. The continent of Africa is the world’s second largest based on land area and population just after Asia. 2. Top five largest countries of Africa are Algeria, Congo Democratic Republic of the, Sudan, Libya and Chad. 3. Top five smallest African countries and territories are Mauritius, São Tomé and Príncipe, Seychelles, Saint Helena and Mayotte. African Country from largest to smallest Area sq mile Area sq km Algeria 919,595 2,381,740 Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) 905,568 2,345,410 Sudan 718,723 1,861,484 Libya 679,362 1,759,540 Chad 495,755 1,284,000 Niger 489,191 1,267,000 Angola 481,354 1,246,700 Mali 478,767 1,240,000 South Africa 471,011 1,219,912 Ethiopia 435,186 1,127,127 Mauritania 397,95
Learn More About Africa

Ethiopian Midwest American Hotdish

Image
Our Ethiopian hot dish combines Ethiopian cooking with classic Minnesota Midwest casserole meal. The hot dish’s origins are a product of settlers traditions in Midwest America dating back to the early 20th century. A hot-dish or casserole is a one-pan meal that traditionally includes a combination of starch like potatoes, pasta, or rice, ground meat, vegetables, and a creamy canned soup base, all topped with crunchy goodness like breadcrumbs or tater tots. The concept of hot dish became popular in the Upper Midwest, particularly in states like Minnesota, North Dakota, and Wisconsin, in the 1930s and 1940s. This period was marked by economic challenges, including the Great Depression. The need for economical and filling meals led to the creation of dishes that could be stretched to feed many people using simple, affordable ingredients . Hot dishes became synonymous with potlucks, church suppers, and social gatherings. These events were central to rural and small-town communities, where
Learn More About Africa

Neck elongation rings how to put on and take off

Image
Neck elongation rings how to put on and take off. Idzila are Ndebele wives traditionally wear rings around the neck as a status symbol and wear rings around the arms, legs, and neck. Wearing Neck Rings. For centuries, married South African Ndebele tribes’ women saw wearing heavy rings around their neck as an honored status symbol. Neck rings are any form of stiff necklaces worn around the neck of an individual. The neck rings are usually made of copper or brass. During initiation, girls wear an array of colorfully beaded hoops called izigolwan around their legs, arms, waist, and neck. After marriage, the Ndebele wife would wear copper and brass rings around her arms, legs, and neck, symbolizing her bond and faithfulness to her husband, once her home was built. Idzila rings were believed to have strong ritual powers. Husbands used to provide their wives with rings; the richer the husband, the more rings the wife would wear. These outward symbols can be removed only in ca
Learn More About Africa