List of African dishes

This is a list of notable dishes found in African cuisine. African cuisine is a generalized term collectively referring to the cuisines of Africa. The continent of Africa is the second largest landmass on Earth, and is home to hundreds of different cultural and ethnic groups. This diversity is also reflected in the many local culinary traditions in terms of choice of ingredients, style of preparation and cooking techniques.

African dishes

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

Name	Image	Country / Region	Description
Akara		Nigeria	Peeled black-eyed peas made into balls and deep-fried.
Ahriche		Morocco	Tripe wrapped around sticks and cooked over hot coals.
Alloco		Cote d'Ivoire	A fried plantain snack, often served with chili pepper and onions.
Amala		Nigeria	Yam porridge, served with a variety of soups.
Asida		North Africa	A lump of cooked wheat flour dough, sometimes with butter or honey added.
Attiéké		Côte d'Ivoire	A side/ main dish made from cassava that is a part of the cuisine of Côte d'Ivoire in Africa.
Baba ghanoush		Levant	Mashed eggplant with virgin olive oil and various seasonings.
Babute		Democratic Republic of Congo	Ground beef, curry powder, and apricots.
Bazeen		Libya	Barley dough served with tomato sauce, eggs, potatoes, and mutton.
Bichak		Morocco	A stuffed tricornered appetizer.
Biltong		Southern Africa	Similar to jerky. Raw meat, such as beef or game meats like ostrich, cut into strips, cured and dried.
Bobotie		South Africa	Spiced ground meat with an egg topping.
Brik		Algeria	Stuffed pastry.
Briouat		Morocco	Sweet puff pastry.
Bunny chow		South Africa	Often simply called "Bunny", a fast food dish that is a hollowed out loaf of bread filled with curry.
Cachupa		Cape Verde	A stew of hominy, beans, and meat.
Camel milk	File:HALIB.jpg	North Africa	The milk of a camel.
Chakalaka		South Africa	Vegetable relish.
Chakhchoukha		Algeria	A stew of lamb, spices, tomatoes, and flatbread.
Chamin		North Africa	A slow-cooked stew of meat, potatoes, beans, and barley.
Chermoula		North Africa	A marinade of oil, lemon juice, pickled lemons, herbs, garlic, cumin, and salt, most often used to flavor seafood.
Cocada amarela		Angola	A dessert of eggs and coconut.
Couscous		North Africa	A semolina pasta.
Delele		Zimbabwe	Okra prepared with baking soda.
Draw soup		Nigeria	A soup of okra or pumpkin seeds.
Duqqa		Egypt	A dip of herbs and spices.
Echicha		Nigeria	Cassava, pigeon pea, and palm oil.
Fatteh		Levant	Khubz topped with various ingredients, such as yogurt, chickpeas, and olive oil.
Feijoada		Southern Africa	A stew of beans, beef, and pork.
Fesikh		Egypt	Fermented, salted mullet.
Fig roll		Egypt	An ancient Egyptian pastry, filled with fig paste.
Fit-fit		Ethiopia and Eritrea	An Eritrean and Ethiopian food typically served for breakfast (though it can be served with other meals).
Freekeh		Levant	A cereal food made from green wheat that goes through a roasting process in its production. It is an Arab dish that is especially popular in Levantine, Arabian Peninsula, Palestinian and Egyptian cuisine, but also in North African and other neighboring cuisines.
Frejon		Nigeria	Frejon (From Feijão, which is the Portuguese word for beans) is a coconut bean soup which is eaten especially during Holy Week by a selection of Christians, mostly Catholics, across the world. Countries where Frejon is popular include Brazil and Nigeria.
Frikkadel		Southern Africa	A traditional Afrikaner dish comprising usually baked, but sometimes deep-fried, meatballs prepared with onion, bread, eggs, vinegar and spices.
Fufu		Ghana	Boiled starchy vegetables like cassava, yams or plantains which are pounded into a dough-like consistency and eaten in small balls with a dipping soup or sauce.
Ful medames		Egypt	Mashed fava beans with olive oil, chopped parsley, onion, garlic, and lemon juice.
Funkaso		Nigeria	A Nigerian dish of millet pancakes containing millet, butter and sugar.
Ga'at		Ethiopia and Eritrea	A stiff porridge, made traditionally with barley flour, though in many communities wheat flour is often used.
Mukhbaza		Eritrea	Wheat flour bread with ghee, banana, honey, and other ingredients.
Garri		Nigeria	A popular West African food made from cassava tubers.
Gatsby (sandwich)		Southern Africa	A South African style of deli sandwich very similar in content and method of preparation as a hoagie in the United States. It is mostly popular in the Western Cape province.
Gored gored		Ethiopia and Eritrea	A raw beef dish that is typically cubed and left unmarinated.
Halva		Middle East	Refers to many types of dense, sweet confections, served across the Middle East, South Asia, Central Asia, West Asia, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, the Balkans, Eastern Europe, Malta and the Jewish world.
Harira		Algeria and Morocco	A traditional Algerian and Moroccan soup of Maghreb.
Hawawshi		Egypt	A traditional Egyptian food very similar to the Middle eastern pizza-like Lahmacun. It is meat minced and spiced with onions and pepper, parsley and sometimes hot peppers and chilies, placed between two circular layers of dough, then baked in the oven.
Himbasha		Ethiopia and Eritrea	An Ethiopian and Eritrean celebration bread that is slightly sweet.
Injera		Ethiopia and Eritrea	A yeast-risen flatbread with a unique, slightly spongy texture. Traditionally made out of teff flour, it's a national dish in Ethiopia and Eritrea. A similar variant is eaten in Somalia (where it is called canjeelo or lahooh) and Yemen (where it is known as lahoh).
Iru		Nigeria	A type of fermented locust beans used as a condiment in cooking. It's similar to ogiri and douchi, and is very popular among the Yoruba people of Nigeria. It is used in cooking traditional soups like egusi soup, okro soup and ogbono soup.
Isi ewu		Nigeria	A traditional Eastern Nigeria dish that is made with a goat's head.
Isidudu		Zimbabwe	A pap dish made to simmer with pumpkin, curried cabbage and liver.
Jollof rice		Senegal	Also called 'Benachin' meaning "one pot" in the Wolof language,of Senegal is a popular dish in many parts of West Africa. It is thought to have originated in Gambia but has since spread to the whole of West Africa, especially Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana Mali, and Nigeria amongst members of the Wolof ethnic group.
Kachumbari		East Africa	A fresh tomato and onion salad.
Kebab		Middle East	A wide variety of skewered meals originating in the Middle East and later on adopted in Turkey, Azerbaijan, Southern Europe, South Asia and Asia Minor, that are now found worldwide.
Kedjenou	File:Kedjenou with rice 1.jpg	Côte d'Ivoire	A spicy stew that is slow-cooked in a sealed canari (terra-cotta pot) over fire or coals and prepared with chicken or guinea hen and vegetables
Kelewele		Ghana and Liberia	Fried plantains seasoned with spices.
Kenkey		Ghana	A staple dish similar to a sourdough dumpling from the Akan, Ga and Ewe inhabited regions of West Africa, usually served with a soup, stew, or sauce.
Kitcha		Ethiopia and Eritrea	A basic, thin, unleavened bread, cooked until slightly burned.
Kitfo		Ethiopia and Eritrea	Raw beef marinated in mitmita (a chili powder based spice blend) and niter kibbeh.
Koeksister		South Africa, Namibia and Botswana	A South African syrup-coated doughnut in a twisted or braided shape (like a plait).
Konkonte		Ghana	A poverty food of Ghana made from dried and pounded manioc root. It is also eaten in the Caribbean.
Kuli-kuli		Nigeria	A Hausa food that is primarily made from peanuts. It is a popular snack in Nigeria.
Kushari		Egypt	Made from rice, lentils, chickpeas and macaroni covered with tomato sauce and fried onions.
Lablabi		Tunisia	A Tunisian dish based on chick peas in a thin garlic and cumin-flavoured soup, served over small pieces of stale crusty bread.
Lahoh		Somalia	A spongy, pancake-like bread originating in Djibouti, Somalia and Yemen. It is also popular in Israel, where it was introduced by Yemenite Jews who immigrated there.
Maafe		Mali	A stew or sauce (depending on water content) common to much of West Africa. It originates from the Mandinka and Bambara people of Mali. Variants of the dish appear in the cuisine of nations throughout West Africa and Central Africa.
Makroudh		Tunisia	A pastry often filled with dates or almonds.
Mala Mogodu		Southern African	A South African food, Mogodu is a derivative of tripe served as a stew with hot pap usually in winter.
Malva pudding		Southern African	A sweet pudding of Afrikaner origin, usually served hot with custard or ice-cream. It is made with apricot jam and has a spongy caramelized texture. It is often found on the dessert menu of South African restaurants.
Mandazi		East Africa	A fluffy fried bread snack, Mandazi is a form of fried bread that originated in Eastern Africa in the Swahili coastal areas of Kenya and Tanzania. It is still popular in the region, as it is convenient to make, can be eaten with almost any food or dips or just as a snack by itself, and can be saved and reheated for later consumption.
Matbucha		Morocco	Tomatoes and roasted bell peppers cooked together, seasoned with garlic and chili pepper. The name of the dish originates from Arabic and means "cooked [salad]". It is served as an appetizer, often as part of a meze. In Israel it is sometimes referred to as "Turkish salad" (Hebrew: סלט טורקי salat turki).
Matoke		Uganda	A meal consisting of steamed green banana (or plantain) and is one of the national dishes of Uganda.
Méchoui		North Africa	A whole sheep or a lamb spit roasted on a barbecue. The word comes from the Arabic word šawa, which means "grilled, roasted". This dish is very popular in North Africa.
Melktert		South Africa, Namibia and Botswana	A South African dessert. It is a sweet pastry crust containing a creamy filling made from milk, flour, sugar and eggs.
Merguez		North Africa	A very spicy, red sausage of mutton or beef.
Mesfouf		Tunisia	Similar to couscous, with butter added.
Moin moin		Nigeria	A Nigerian steamed bean pudding made from a mixture of washed and peeled black-eyed beans, onions and fresh ground peppers (usually a combination of bell peppers and chilli or scotch bonnet).
Mrouzia		Morocco	Sweet and salty tajine with honey, cinnamon and almonds.
Msemen		Maghreb	Traditional Amazigh pancakes in Maghreb. These pancakes are usually used as an accompaniment to a cup of aromatic morning mint tea or of creamy coffee. Msemen can also be stuffed with vegetables or meat fillings.
Mugoyo		Uganda	Mugoyo is a traditional main course dish in Uganda. The main ingredients of the dish are sweet potatoes and beans.The purple sweet potatoes are steamed in banana leaves while the red kidney beans are boiled with some seasoning. They are then mingled together to form one dish.
Mulukhiyah		Egypt	The leaves of Corchorus species are used as a vegetable in Middle Eastern, East African, North African, and South Asian cuisine. Mulukhiyyah is rather bitter, and when boiled, the resulting liquid is a thick, highly mucilaginous broth; it is often described as "slimy," rather like cooked okra.
Ndolé		Cameroon	A national dish of Cameroon. The dish consists of a stew of nuts, ndoleh (bitter leaves indigenous to West Africa), and fish or ground beef.
Nshima		Central Africa	A cornmeal product and a staple food in Zambia, Malawi and the Kasai Oriental and Kasai Occidental provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo. It is made from ground maize (corn) flour known locally as mealie-meal. Nshima is very similar to ugali or posho of East Africa, sadza of Zimbabwe, pap of South Africa and fufu of West Africa.
Obusuma		Kenya	A Kenyan dish made from maize flour (cornmeal) cooked with boiling water to a thick porridge dough-like consistency. In Luhya cuisine it is the most common staple starch.
Ogbono soup		Nigeria	A Nigerian dish made with ground ogbono seeds, with considerable local variation. The ground ogbono seeds are used as a thickener, and give the soup a black coloration. Besides seeds, water and palm oil, it typically contains meat, seasonings such as chili pepper, leaf vegetables and other vegetables.
Ogi		Nigeria	a fermented cereal pudding from Nigeria, typically made from maize, sorghum, or millet.
Owofibo		Nigeria	An oil soup made of blended tomato mixed with akun and palm oil.
Pakora		South Asia	A fried snack (fritter) found across South Asia. Pakoras are created by taking one or two ingredients such as onion, eggplant, potato, spinach, plantain, paneer, cauliflower, tomato, chili pepper, or occasionally bread or chicken and dipping them in a batter of gram flour and then deep-frying them.
Pap		Namibia	A traditional porridge of mielie-meal (ground maize) or other grain.
Pastilla		Algeria and Morocco	A traditional Berber Moroccan dish, an elaborate meat pie traditionally made of squab (fledgling pigeons). As squabs are often hard to get, shredded chicken is more often used today; pastilla can also use fish or offal as a filling.
Phutu		South Africa	A traditional maize meal dish from South Africa. It is a crumbly or grainy type of pap (polenta) or porridge, eaten mainly by the Basotho, Bantu and Afrikaner people. It is cooked in cauldrons or potjies over an open fire, stirred with great care until a course consistency in texture is reached.
Potbrood		South Africa, Namibia and Botswana	A bread first made by the Boer settlers of what is now South Africa. Potbrood was traditionally baked in a cast iron pot (also known as a Dutch oven) in a pit made in the ground and lined with hot coals. Today potbrood is often made at a braai by packing charcoal or wood coals around a cooking pot.
Potjiekos		Namibia and South Africa	Literally translated "small pot food", is a stew prepared outdoors. It is traditionally cooked in a round, cast iron, three-legged pot, the potjie, brought from the Netherlands to South Africa in the 17th century and found in the homes and villages of people throughout southern Africa. The pot is heated using small amounts of wood or charcoal or, if fuel is scarce, twisted grass or even dried animal dung.
Pottage		Great Britain	A thick soup or stew made by boiling vegetables, grains, and, if available, meat or fish.
Qatayef	File:Ataef.jpg	Egypt	An Arab dessert commonly served during the month of Ramadan, a sort of sweet dumpling filled with cream or nuts. It is usually prepared using Akkawi cheese as a filling.
Sadza		Southern Africa and Eastern Africa	Sadza in Shona (isitshwala in isiNdebele, pap in South Africa, or nsima in the Chichewa language of Malawi), Ugali in East Africa, is a cooked cornmeal that is the staple food in Zimbabwe and other parts of southern and eastern Africa. This food is cooked widely in other countries of the region.
Samosa		Widespread	Fried or baked pastry with a savory filling such as spiced potatoes, onions, peas, lentils, ground lamb or chicken.
Seswaa		Botswana	A traditional meat dish of Botswana, made of beef, goat or lamb meat. The fatty meat is generally boiled until tender in any pot, with "just enough salt", and shredded or pounded. It is often served with pap (maize meal) or sorghum meal porridge.
Sfenj		North Africa	Donuts cooked in oil then soaked in honey or sprinkled with sugar.
Shahan ful		North Africa	A common dish in Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan and the region, and is generally served for breakfast. Believed to be an import from Sudan, it is made by slowly cooking fava beans in water that are then crushed into a paste, which is then served alongside a diverse variety of foods. It is typically eaten without the aid of utensils accompanied with a bread roll. It is popular during the Ramadan season and during the various Lents.
Shakshouka		Northwest Africa	A dish of eggs poached in a sauce of tomatoes, chili peppers, onions, often spiced with cumin. It is believed to have a Tunisian origin.
Shiro		Ethiopia and Eritrea	A homogenous stew whose primary ingredient is powdered chickpeas or broad bean meal. It is often prepared with the addition of minced onions, garlic and depending upon regional variation; ground ginger or chopped tomatoes and chili-peppers. Shiro is usually served atop injera, however, it can be cooked in shredded taita and eaten with a spoon, this version would be called shiro fit-fit.
Shish taouk		North Africa	Marinated cubes of chicken are skewered and grilled.
Skilpadjies		South Africa	A traditional South African food, also known by other names such as "muise", "vlermuise" and "pofadder". The dish is lamb's liver wrapped in netvet (caul fat), which is the fatty membrane that surrounds the kidneys. Most cooks mince the liver, add coriander, chopped onion, salt and Worcestershire sauce then wrap balls of this mixture with the netvet and secure it with a toothpick. The balls, approximately 80mm in diameter, are normally grilled over an open charcoal fire and ready when the fat is crisp.
Sosatie		Botswana, Namibia and South Africa	A traditional South African dish of meat (usually lamb or mutton) cooked on skewers. The term derives from sate ("skewered meat") and saus (spicy sauce). It is of Cape Malay origin, used in Afrikaans, the primary language of the Cape Malays, and the word has gained greater circulation in South Africa.
Stuffed zucchinis		Worldwide	A dish that exists in different names and forms around the world.
Suya		Nigeria, Niger	A shish kebab like food popular in West Africa, originally from the Hausa people of northern Nigeria and Niger. Suya is generally made with skewered beef, fish, or chicken. The meat is rubbed-in with tankora, a dry spice mix containing powdered groundnuts, cayenne pepper, ginger, paprika and onion powder, then barbecued.
Tabil		Tunisia	A Tunisian spice mixture consisting of ground coriander seed, caraway seed, garlic powder, and chili powder. The term can also refer to coriander by itself.
Tahini		North Africa	A paste made from ground, hulled sesame seeds used in North African, Greek, Turkish and Middle Eastern cuisine. Tahini is made from sesame seeds that are soaked in water and then crushed to separate the bran from the kernels. The crushed seeds are soaked in salt water, causing the bran to sink. The floating kernels are skimmed off the surface, toasted, and ground to produce an oily paste.
Tajine		North Africa	A Maghrebi dish from North Africa, that is named after the special earthenware pot in which it is cooked. A similar dish, known as tavvas, is found in the cuisine of Cyprus. The traditional tajine pot is formed entirely of a heavy clay, which is sometimes painted or glazed. Tajines in Moroccan cuisine are slow-cooked stews braised at low temperatures, resulting in tender meat with aromatic vegetables and sauce.
Tapalapa bread		West Africa	A traditional bread of western Africa, mainly in Senegal, The Gambia and Guinea.
Tapioca pudding		Widespread	A sweet pudding made with tapioca and either milk or cream. Coconut milk is also used in cases in which the flavor is preferred or in areas in which it is a commonplace ingredient for cooking. It is made in many cultures with equally varying styles, and may be produced in a variety of ways. Its consistency ranges from thin (runny), to thick, to firm enough to eat with a fork.
Thieboudienne		Senegal	Made with fish, rice and tomato sauce, and may also include onions, carrots, cabbage, cassava and peanut oil.
Tomato bredie		Namibia and South Africa	A South African stew, referred to in Afrikaans as 'tamatiebredie', normally made with mutton, is cooked for a very long time, and its seasonings include cinnamon, cardamom, ginger and cloves as well as chilli. It is of Dutch origin.
Torta de Gazpacho		Algeria	A type of torta, or flat bread.
Toum		Levant	A garlic sauce as prepared in Lebanon, the Levant, and Egypt similar to the European aioli. It contains garlic, salt, olive oil or vegetable oil, and lemon juice crushed using a wooden mortar and pestle. There is also a variation popular in many villages, such as Zgharta, where mint is added, called "Zeit and Toum".
Ugali		African Great Lakes	A dish of maize flour (cornmeal) cooked with water to a porridge- or dough-like consistency. It is the most common staple starch featured in the local cuisines of the eastern African Great Lakes region and Southern Africa. When ugali is made from another starch, it is usually given a specific regional name. See also: Pap (food).
Umngqusho		Widespread	A Bantu dish with several variants.
Usban	File:Usban.jpg	Tunisia	A traditional kind of Tunisian sausage, stuffed with a mixture of rice, herbs, lamb, chopped liver and heart. This dish is usually served alongside the main meal of rice or couscous, often on special occasions.
Vetkoek		Southern Africa	Dough deep-fried in cooking oil and either filled with cooked mince (ground beef) or spread with syrup, honey, or jam.
Wat		Ethiopia and Eritrea	An Ethiopian and Eritrean stew or curry that may be prepared with chicken, beef, lamb, a variety of vegetables, spice mixtures such as berbere, and niter kibbeh, a seasoned clarified butter. Wats are traditionally eaten with injera, a spongy flat bread made from the millet-like grain known as teff.
Waterblommetjiebredie		South Africa	A stew made of meat, typically lamb, stewed together with the waterblommetjies (Aponogeton distachyos flowers, commonly known as Cape pondweed, Cape hawthorn or Cape asparagus) which are found in the dams and marshes of the Western Cape of South Africa.
Yassa		Senegal	A spicy, marinated fish or poultry dish prepared with onions, lemon. Ingredients: Peanut oil / olive oil, parley, bay leave, green seedless olives, black pepper, green or red bell peppers, mustard, etc.… .

See also

• List of cuisines
• List of Ethiopian dishes and foods

Further reading

• McCann, James C. (2009). Stirring the Pot: A History of African Cuisine. Athens, Ohio: Ohio University Press. ISBN 9780896802728. Retrieved November 2012. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)