The Science of Spice

36 World of Spice

Beef bunny chow

made with Durban

curry masala,

see p211.

WEST AFRICA

Hot | Pungent | Smoky

Signature

Chilli, ginger, garlic

Most savoury dishes begin

with these backbone spices,

almost always used together.

Chillies tend to be at the hot

end of the scale, used fresh,

dried, or powdered.

Supporting

Grains of Selim, grains

of paradise, iru, prekese,

nutmeg, bay

Grains of Selim and grains

of paradise both bring

pepperiness. Prekese are the

sweetly fragrant pods of a

pea-like plant, also known as

“soup perfume”. Iru are the

fermented seeds of the

locust bean tree, with a

strong ammonia smell,

used as a condiment.

Supplementary

Turmeric, Ashanti pepper,

clove, anise

Ashanti pepper (see p35)

is most important in soups,

notably banga (palm nut),

peanut, or pepper soups.

Clove-spiced sour millet

porridge is a popular

breakfast dish in Accra.

Durban is known

as the biggest Indian

city outside India,

and Victoria Street

Market is famed

for its spices.

SPICE

PALETTE

LOCAL SPICE BLEND

Yaji

This is the spice mix used to marinate the meat

for suya, West Africa’s street food kebabs.

10 strands of grains of Selim

1 tbsp whole Ashanti pepper

5 tbsp crushed kuli-kuli

or peanut puffs, e.g.

Osem Bamba

5 tbsp ginger powder

2 tbsp cayenne pepper flakes

1 dry stock cube, crumbled

(^1) ⁄ 2 tsp salt
black pepper, to taste
Break up the grains of Selim and grind with the Ashanti
pepper ; you may need to sieve out any fibres. Combine
with the remaining ingredients and mix well.
West Africa is a region of diverse landscapes and
peoples, and equally varied culinary traditions. It
can, however, be useful to consider the cuisine divided
according to its two major language groups: French and
English. In Francophone countries, the use of mustard
paste and souring agents such as vinegar or lemon
juice is widespread, notably in the popular chicken
dish poulet yassa. Anglophone countries, by contrast,
bring intense depth of flavour to dishes through
smoked, fermented, and dried ingredients, pepping
up almost any savoury dish with dried or smoked and
ground crayfish, or fermented locust beans.
“
Originally from Senegal, the
spicy rice dish jollof is raising
the profile of West African
cuisine across the world.
”
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036-037_West_Africa_Southern_Africa.indd 36 04/06/2018 15:54