Black History: A Kitchen Table Celebration

Black history isn't just for the classroom. You can teach your children and students about Black history through food-a topic everyone enjoys. You may even learn some important facts and African-American traditions yourself as you 'cook' your way though important moments in African-American history with your family.

One of the first things you'll want to do is take a little field trip through your kitchen with your kids to take a look at some of the food items that you use every day, or fairly often. You will most likely find things like rice, potatoes, yams, and bread products. This will give you the inspiration to create some African-American dishes with a flair that only your family can pull off.

You can also teach your children about certain foods that are popular in both Africa and America; for instance, yams or sweet potatoes are eaten in several parts of the continent, such as Kenya and parts of Egypt. However, in Africa, the sweet potatoes are mostly eaten steamed or boiled, and in the U.S., African-Americans tend to 'candy' them or make pie or tarts out of yams. For candied yams, butter, brown sugar, vanilla, and honey are added to the sweet potatoes before baking them, and you can even top off your dish with African treats such as coconut, macadamia nuts, or pineapple. Sweet potato pies and casseroles are traditionally eaten by Black American families at holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas, or at 'Sunday Dinner', but you can make these dishes any time

Also, peas and beans are eaten often in Africa, for the protein and healthy carbohydrates they offer. Black-eyed peas (which are also called cow peas), white beans, even certain nuts, such as almonds, are also eaten on the continent, and we enjoy the same types of food here as well. As an entree, the beans may be stewed with tomatoes, onions or peppers, and served with either white or yellow rice. Beans and rice together create a complete protein, so not only is this a tasty entree, but it's extremely healthy as well. Black-eyed peas,are often used in African-American culture at the start of the new year, in order to keep 'evil spirits' out of the household. It is also said that making black-eyed peas during the New Year's Day celebration will help the single women in the family to find a husband that year.

Many Africans are still hunters today, and in different regions of the continent, you can find meats and fish that are also available in America. For instance, quality tuna is found in North Africa, and fish is usually stewed or salted. You can salt your fish by leaving it in salt for a few hours in order to preserve it, and add okra, potatoes, tomatoes, onion and pepper to a fish stock. You can serve your fish with rice as well, and you can even freeze it for a meal later in the week. For seasoning for fish and beans, you can also use Daddawa, which comes from the flat bean of the locust tree; the paste is available in buillon cubes in the international section of the grocery store, or at African markets in your area. For African-Americans, fish is usually fried or steamed, and is a great part of family functions and the 'fish fry', which is sometimes used as a fundraiser for churches and schools in the African-American community.

For great ideas on African and African-American recipes that will help you celebrate the goodness of Black History Month, check out these great recipes for you and your family to enjoy. There are also several links to sites about African foods, as well as African markets that may be in a city near you. Enjoy!

Jolof rice

1/4 cup oil
6 onions, chopped
4 bell peppers, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
1 cup string beans
3/4 cup peas
6 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon dried thyme
4 cups medium grain rice, cooked separately
1/2 cup tomato paste

Fry onions and peppers approx 5 minutes. Add remaining ingredients, except rice, cook for 5 to 10 minutes. Add rice and tomato paste. Simmer. Add water by spoonfuls as needed to prevent scorching. When veggies are tender, it's ready to serve.

Recipe taken from www.congocookbook.com

In a 9-inch skillet:

Saute: 2 Ibs. CHOPPED BEEF

1 tsp. SALT

1/2 tsp. PEPPER

1 tsp. GARLIC POWDER (or 2 cloves mashed)

4 Tbs. CHOPPED FRESH DILL (or 1 tsp. dried dill) in

2 Tbs. SALAD OIL until meat browns.

Add 1 cup COOKED RICE and blend.

Cut a Slit in 8 large TOMATOES (very firm), halfway across the center.

Squeeze at the sides to open the slit.

Scoop out all the flesh from inside of tomatoes with a spoon.

Refill tomato with beef mixture and close the tomato.

Melt 2 Tbs. BUTTER and

2 Tbs. OIL in a large skillet.

Recipe take from http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Cookbook/Sudan.html#MASCHI

Saute the tomatoes carefully in the fat, rolling them gently until they become dark red on all sides.

Remove the tomatoes with the oil and place in a casserole or heavy saucepan.

Prepare sauce as follows and pour over the tomatoes:

Combine: 2 6-oz. cans TOMATO PASTE thinned with

2 6 oz. cans WATER

1/2 tsp. SALT

1 tsp. CINNAMON

1 tsp. GARLIC POWDER.

Simmer the tomatoes gently over low flame for 10 to 15 minutes until sauce is cooked.

Remove carefully to a 15-inch round platter.

Surround with raw TOMATOES cut in thick slices.

Top each slice with GREEN OLIVES

If there is more Maschi filling left over after filling the tomatoes place it in a suitable pan and bake it alongside the tomatoes.