Life in Africa has obvious differences from life in the States. One of the biggest differences is the food. Typically, the only meat we eat is beef (and usually it’s ground beef). Last week, however, we got a special treat. Ellen spent a few days with some missionary friends that live just about an hour away. When she came back home, she brought some pork with her. Pork! It was the first pork I’ve had since I’ve been in Cameroon. While we all agreed that the pork was very tasty and tender, if we hadn’t known that it was pork, we would have just thought we were eating beef. Regardless of the actual taste, it was nice to have a different kind of meat for a change.
Since I’ve been little, one of my favorite foods has always been tomato soup. I love a good old can of Campbells. Unfortunately, cream of tomato soup is not something that is accessible in Cameroon. In fact, canned tomato products are pretty limited. The only canned tomato product we can typically find is tomato paste. Last year, the other teacher and I tried our hand several times at making tomato soup from tomato paste. We got a different result with every batch that we made (probably mainly due to the fact that we never used a recipe). While most of the end results were pretty good, they just couldn’t compare to Campbells. So this summer, I went home eager to have some “real” tomato soup. When the soup was finally ready, I ladled a big bowl of it. To my chagrin, I found that I didn’t like the tomato soup at all. It tasted so bland and boring compared to some of the versions we had concocted in Cameroon. After that experience, I made it my mission to find a recipe for the perfect tomato soup. And last night, I tried the first of my many recipes. Instead of using a base of tomato paste, I made my own tomato puree from fresh tomatoes. And I must say, I think the first recipe I tried is a keeper. In fact, after dinner, I deleted all of the other tomato soup recipes from my computer—the soup was just that good!
At our house here in Africa, we typically cook very American dishes. Once in a while, though, we have the opportunity to eat with the nationals. Last Monday, our household headed down the hill to the home of our house helper, Marie-Claire. Her oldest daughter was turning 19, and we were going to help celebrate. In light of the celebration, Marie-Claire prepared couscous and njapcha. You may remember some of my previous posts on couscous. This is not the traditional couscous people in the States know of. I think this couscous is made of corn (or something similar) and then pounded into a dough-like consistency. (Actually, the term couscous and njapcha is the “French” way of referring to the food. The English term for the food is fufu and jama jama. I should probably use those terms to avoid confusion.) The best thing I know to compare the taste to is Cream of Wheat. Now, I enjoy Cream of Wheat when it’s carefully prepared. However, I don’t like any lumps in my Cream of Wheat. A ball of fufu is essentially one giant lump of Cream of Wheat. Something about its texture just does not sit well with me.
But, when we went to Marie-Claire’s, I knew it was very important for me to eat nearly all my food. They don’t have much, and they were generously feeding us in addition to their large family. I slowly ate small pieces of the fufu, covering them with the jama jama (a sauce made from greens). It took me about twice as long as everyone else to eat, but I succeeded in eating nearly the entire ball of fufu (about 2 cups worth). It was a big moment for me, to say the least. J |
Food for Thought
