Introduction People used to talk about Africa as if it were a faraway place that’s hard to get to and different in every possible way from the rest of the world. Not anymore. It’s time to release these outdated stereotypes and misconceptions, because Africa is everywhere. It’s in our past, present, and future. Africa is at the root of human history. It is the place where humans first discovered fire, a necessary first step for cooking and civilization. Its rhythms are embedded in popular music, its textures and colors in contemporary art. Most important, Africa is home to the youngest population in the world: 70 percent of our people are under the age of thirty. Africa is the future! Every day, our youth create culture and design innovative solutions to the world's biggest challenges. Africa connects us more deeply with ourselves, with one another, and with our planet. Trace almost anything that humans touch backward or forward in history, and it will take you to Africa.
This book was written so that you, too, can connect to Africa, in the most delightful and intimate way I can possibly imagine—through the food you cook and eat at home. I grew up in Senegal, a breathtaking coastal country in West Africa. A lof of the food we love to eat, no matter where we are in the world, connects back to the region of my motherland. Traditional West African cuisine is among the healthiest in the world, with its lean meats, abundant vegetables, leafy greens, legumes, and hearty beans and grains prepared in ways that honor the integrity of the source ingredient while bringing out a mélange of flavor possibilities along the way.
I have now lived in the United States for more than half my life and work as a chef, entrepreneur, and activist centering my activities around West African and West African-inspired food. With this book, I will show you how you can bring the joy of West African culture into your life with great-tasting recipes that are easy enough to make at home and impressive enough to serve to royalty. You'll get a glimpse into my world, where Africa meets America, where complex flavor palates meet simple cooking techniques, where family, community, and diaspora all come together in unity and harmony.
My previous cookbooks focused on representing West African food as it exists in the motherland. This time, I bring you a lineup of recipes that shows you how easily West African cooking can be incorporated into your weekly repertoire, without compromising authenticity and deliciousness. Each of these dishes was designed so that it can be cooked in any kitchen with easy-to-source ingredients to create a mouthwatering, one-of-a-kind meal. From the sun-kissed coconut-limey palate of Brazil to the Spanish paella brought to Europe by the Moors to the sultry one-pot gumbos and stews in the American South, West African influences are truly everywhere. Even if you’ve never had West African food before, you’ll quickly experience how familiar its flavors are. Evolution and adaptation are a core part of our culture and cuisine, and you’ll see this reflected in the vast variety of tastes and preparations represented in these unique and still very characteristic West African recipes.
The recipes in this book serve as reminders of how much all humans have in common with one another. I don’t mean this in a Pollyanna-ish way. There are many very serious inequities and challenges that face our world, especially when it comes to racial, economic, and social issues. In this moment in global history, our collective moral conscience is being challenged to elevate itself. We are being reminded to honor and appreciate one another’s cultures and identities in new and evolved ways. (Appreciation is different from appropriation, which is when members of a majority group adopt cultural elements of a minority group in a disrespectful, exploitative, or stereotypical manner.)
My life’s purpose is to bring West African–inspired food to every kitchen, regardless of where in the world that kitchen might be. Through the food of my home region, I want to showcase the beauty of a culture that’s centered around community.
Where I come from, food is more than just a collection of ingredients in a bowl. The West African cook is a griot of sorts, a storyteller who connects us to our past, our present, our future—and to our environment. Every recipe is a story that transcends time and space, having been passed on by our ancestors to their children and their children and so on, and now to you, through this book. I’m so excited to welcome you to this world! When you cook the food from this book, you become part of the story, a key member of the community of people who cook and enjoy contemporary West African food at home. You will expand your horizons, tap into the innermost essence of your joy, and fill your kitchen and dining areas with some of the richest, most delectable smells, sights, sounds, and tastes you’ve experienced.
Copyright © 2023 by Pierre Thiam with Lisa Katayama. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
