Further south, Tanzania has a completely different cuisine to Ethiopia and Eritrea. Heavily influenced by Indian cooking thanks to the migration of Indians into Tanzania and making the most of the abundance of fish and seafood along its eastern coast, coconut milk is also used to create sauces for curries, which are often heavily spiced and full of fiery heat. Further inland, barbecued meat (known as nyama choma) is popular, and the national dish of ugali is a dough made from maize, cassava, sorghum or millet, served with a dry spiced curry of meat, fish or vegetables. Different varieties of bananas are also grown all over Tanzania, and are often grilled or stewed in savoury dishes.
The island of Zanzibar is particularly well-known for mchuzi wa samaki, a fish and coconut curry spiced with cumin, coriander and garam masala. Rice is more popular than beans and grains along the coast of Tanzania and on Zanzibar, but there’s a clear southern Indian influence throughout, with chapattis or pilau often cooked for celebrations.
Somalia
With influences from Turkey, Italy, India and other East African countries, Somalia’s most popular dishes come from all over the world. Pasta (baasto) or rice (bariis) often forms the carbohydrate of a meal, which is then topped with a meaty sauce spiced with cumin, cardamom and cloves. There are also lots of Indian flatbreads such as chapattis, fermented flatbreads like injera and pancakes. Turkish-style kebabs are popular in the south of the country, and meat is the protein of choice for the majority of Somalians (except during religious fasting periods). Bananas are often served on the side of savoury dishes.
One popular snack that’s found not just in Somalia but throughout East Africa is sambusa, which looks exactly like the Indian samosa but is filled with minced meat (sometimes fish), lots of chilli and spices. Halva is also served as a sweet treat during religious or celebratory occasions, as are many other sweet cakes.
Kenya
It’s difficult to sum up the cuisine of Kenya as dishes tend to vary considerably depending on where you are in the country and who’s cooking them. You’ll find fish on the coast, grains in the remote areas and internationally influenced dishes in the cities (such as Indian flatbreads and curries). Starchy, grain-based foods are the most commonly eaten, and ugali is an important staple like in neighbouring Tanzania. Barbecued meat (nyama choma) is popular but generally not eaten daily – instead, dishes of beans and corn or sukuma wiki (sautéed leafy greens, often kale) are relied upon.
Common spices used to flavour dishes are cumin, turmeric, coconut, coriander and tamarind, especially in Swahili cooking. For authentic street food, you can’t get more Kenyan than mutura, a boiled sausage of minced goat and goat blood which is then barbecued.
Dijbouti
Dijbouti is a small country in the Horn of Africa surrounded by Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia, but has its own food culture, in part due to being a French colony and sharing many characteristics with Yemen, which is just across the Red Sea. Baguettes are still eaten in the country, and French mustard is a popular condiment, but arguably the most popular dish is fah-fah, a soupy stew made from goat, mutton or camel meat and flavoured with lots of chillies. Injera-like flatbreads can be found throughout the country, and skudahkharis is a biryani-like combination of rice and lamb heavily spiced with niter kibbeh.
Saffron, cinnamon, cardamom and nutmeg are popular spices, and fish cooked Yemeni-style (split in half and cooked in the oven) are considered a delicacy.
Uganda
Further towards the centre of Africa is Uganda, and the country’s cuisine takes on a different style. Peanuts are an important part of many Ugandan stews, which are often served alongside ugali (known as posho locally). Meat of all kinds is popular, although in more rural areas it is less common, and dried fish is usually rehydrated in stews.
Bananas and plantains are a staple in Uganda, and a small variety known as matoke is commonly cooked when still unripe and green, being roasted, steamed, boiled or mashed. It’s served with a peanut-based sauce called binyebwa (or gnut sauce), or turned into a curry and served with chapattis.
Rwanda
The traditional African staples of plantains, sweet potatoes, cassava and beans make up the majority of Rwandan dishes, with ugali and mashed matoke bananas eaten most days. Meat is a once-in-a-while treat in the more remote parts of the country, but in the larger towns and cities its often sold on skewers known as brochettes. In the past Rwanda was a Belgian colony, which had a lasting effect on the local cuisine – you’ll find potatoes, either as chips or baked whole, as a common side dish. The most common condiment is akabanga, a very hot chilli oil sold in small bottles that’s added to dishes before eating. Near Lake Kivu, fresh fish are often barbecued whole or on skewers, and sombe (a dish of stewed cassava leaves) is a common sight too.
Burundi
Beans are the most important staple in Burundi, a largely vegetarian nation where cows are treated as sacred animals and most farmers choose to grow crops rather than rear animals. Plantain, sweet potato and maize is integral to the local diet, but kidney beans are eaten almost every day. Freshwater fish from Lake Tanganyika are caught and eaten by wealthier residents of Burundi, and sometimes goat or chicken is barbecued or stewed, but only on rare occasions. Onions, tomatoes and chillies are used to flavour dishes, with cumin and turmeric the most common spices. Piri piri chilli sauce is also served with almost every meal.
