Not only is the African continent blessed with an abundance of human and natural resources, it boasts a variety of delights, including delectable seafood dishes, that rival the best of the best around the world. While pescatarian or seafood dishes don’t always make our traditional African menus stand out, they make a great addition to our everyday fare.
Most Africans are known for their love of swallows (starchy foods that are cooked into a dense paste and eaten with various soups) such as; Fufu, Amala, Poundo, Kenkey, etc. These foods are the ones that most people grew up with and most foreigners are used to. Even the aborigines are unaware of the extensive fish dishes that have been perfected in some parts of Africa.
It is very interesting to note that some coastal African countries offer seafood dishes which are basically just the infusion of sea creatures into traditional dishes. The African islands also have many fish dishes that are heavily influenced by Europe. This is especially important because fish dishes were not that popular with Africans in the past.
Nonetheless, these 6 dishes should inspire you to look more to the sea than to the forest when adding animals to your dishes.
MAURITIAN PRAWN ROUGAILLE
Most dishes with shrimp or fish in the same category are usually considered delicious – for example, a potty yam dish garnished with well-seasoned shrimp is almost pure food magic. Speaking of Mauritanian shrimp rougaille, a classic Mauritian dish made with tomato sauce, spices and herbs. The shrimp can be cooked with beef or chicken if desired for a consistent flavor. But prawns or crabs are also sufficient and provide a delicious feeling.
Shrimp Coconut CURRY (Kamba Wa Nazi)
Shrimp coconut curry is a common seafood recipe in Tanzania. It is made with shrimp (sometimes substituted with shrimp or crab) and a mix of other spices. This sauce can be eaten with rice or chapatti.
OCTOPUS SALAD
Octopus salad is as the name suggests. Common in Mauritius, this salad is the right combination of sweet, sour and salty. It is also very tasty and a good alternative to everyday salad recipes that we already know.
fisherman soup
This is a soup common in Nigeria and most of West Africa. This delicious soup is bursting with seafood. The beauty of this soup is that any type of seafood can be used, from fish to shrimp to oysters. They can all be combined in the pot. This spicy, hot paprika-based river fish soup is a delicacy of Hungarian origin.
SEAFOOD OKRA SOUP
Okra soup is one of the simplest soups in Nigeria and easily switched up a notch when the need arises. Seafood Okra Soup is a tasty alternative to regular okra soup and can be eaten with any “swallow”. Traditional okra soups in Nigeria consisted of meat from land animals rather than meat from the sea. However, it is interesting to know that such a soup can only be prepared with meat from the sea. This gives the well-known soup a whole new flavor that will take you on a good journey with the food.
OYSTERS MOMBASA
Named after the Kenyan town, Oysters Mombasa has its origins in Kenya and is a different take on seafood. Combining it with rice is becoming increasingly popular in Kenya and much of Africa. It is an oyster dish that is usually baked and enriched with exquisite spices for incredible flavor.
Conclusion: It is not easy to associate fish specialties with Africans, globalization quickly invalidates such assumptions. More and more Africans are now eating seafood, and their preparation is also creatively combined with the infusion of African cooking methods that rival any seafood cooking methods around the world. What are you waiting for? Try one of the best African seafood dishes in your region and be amazed by the brilliance of the taste.