Malagasy cuisine

The cuisine of Madagascar traditionally consists of a base of rice (Malagasy: vary, pronounced [ˈvarʲ]) with some form of accompaniment (laoka [ˈlokə̥]. Laoka may be vegetarian or include animal proteins typically cooked in a sauce often flavored with ginger, onion, garlic, vanilla, curry or occasionally other spices. A wide variety of sweet and savory fritters and other street foods are available across the island, as are diverse tropical and temperate-climate fruits. Locally-produced beverages include fruit juices, coffee, herbal and black teas and alcoholic drinks such as rum, wine and beer. The cuisines of France, China, India, and to a lesser extent East African and Arabian cultures have all made their influence felt in Madagascar where dishes such as biryani and Chinese noodle soup or snacks such as French bread and samosas have become staples in many Malagasy households.

Ravimbomanga sy patsamena, a traditional Malagasy laoka made of potato leaves stewed with beef and dried shrimp.

Rice (vary)

Rice (vary) is the cornerstone of the Malagasy diet and is typically consumed at every meal. The verb "to eat" in the Malagasy language is mihinam-bary - literally, to eat rice. Eleven strains of rice were reportedly grown on Madagascar by the 19th century. One of these was brought by a trading vessel in 1698 to the colonial city of Charleston (South Carolina), where it soon became the chief export crop of the American South. Rice may be prepared with varying amounts of water to produce a soupy rice (vary sosoa, [ˌvarʲ suˈsuə̥]), eaten with dry laoka, or dry rice (vary maina, [ˌvarʲ ˈmajnə̥]) eaten with a laoka in sauce. Drinks called ranon'ampango [ˌranʷnamˈpaŋɡʷ] and ranovola [ranʷˈvulə̥] are made by adding boiling water to the toasted rice left sticking to the interior of its cooking pot, and are served at meals as a sanitary and tasty alternative to water. Vary amin'anana [ˈvarʲ ˌjamʲˈnananə̥] is a popular traditional stew made with rice, meat and chopped greens. Rice is typically eaten for breakfast and may be accompanied with sliced fruit or eaten with such laoka as fried egg, sausage or kitoza [kiˈtuzə̥] made of smoked strips of zebu, the local cattle. In urban areas, rice may occasionally be replaced by French bread spread with butter.

Accompaniment (laoka)

Voanjobory sy henakisoa is a common laoka made of bambara groundnut cooked with pork.

The accompaniment served with rice is called laoka in the Highlands dialect, the official version of the Malagasy language. Laoka are most often served in some kind of sauce: in the Highlands, this sauce is generally tomato-based, while in coastal areas coconut milk is often added during cooking. In the arid southern and western interior where herding zebu is traditional, fresh or curdled zebu milk is often incorporated into vegetable dishes. Laoka are diverse and may include such ingredients as Bambara peas (voanjobory [vwandzʷˈburʲ]) with pork, beef or fish; various types of freshwater fish (trondro gasy, [ˌtʂundʐʷ ˈɡasʲ]); shredded cassava leaves (ravitoto [ravʲˈtut]) with peanuts, voanjobory, beef or pork; beef (henan'omby [henˈnumbʲ]) or chicken (akoho [aˈkuː]) sauteed with ginger or simmered in its own juices (a preparation called ritra [ˈritʂə̥]); beef stewed with mixed greens, ginger, tomato and onion (a dish called romazava, [ˌrumaˈzavə̥]); various types of seafood, which are more readily available along the coasts or in large urban centers; and many more. In the arid south and west, such as among the Bara or Tandroy peoples, staples include sweet potato, yams, taro root and especially cassava, millet and corn, generally boiled in water and occasionally served in whole milk or flavored with crushed peanuts.

Garlic, onions, ginger, tomatoes, mild curry, and salt are the most common ingredients used to flavor dishes, and in coastal areas other ingredients such as coconut milk, vanilla, cloves or turmeric may also be used. A spicy condiment made from red or green chili pepper (sakay [saˈkaj]) is served on the side rather than mixing the chilis directly into the food as it is being cooked. Indian-style condiments made of pickled mango, lemon, and other fruits (known as achards, French: [aˈʃaʁ]), are a specialty of the northwestern coast; other variations on the achard are found throughout Southeast Asia where they are known as acar. An achard-like salad of green beans, cabbage, carrots and onion in a vinaigrette sauce (called lasary [laˈsarʲ] in Malagasy) is also popular as a side dish - or as the filling of a baguette sandwich - in the Highlands.

Street foods

Kaka pizon is a popular snack in Madagascar.

A variety of sweets like cakes and fritters (collectively known as mofo - [ˈmuf] - or bread) are available from kiosks in towns and cities across Madagascar. The most common is "Malagasy bread" (mofo gasy [ˌmuf ˈɡasʲ]), made from a batter of sweetened rice flour that is poured into greased circular molds and cooked over charcoals. Mofo gasy is a popular breakfast food and is often eaten with coffee, also sold at kiosks. Other sweet mofo include mofo gasy flavored with shredded coconut (mokary [muˈkarʲ]), a deep-fried doughnut called mofo baolina [ˌmuf ˈbolʲ], and fruit fritters (pineapple and bananas being among the most common fruits used). Savory mofo include a mofo gasy salted and fried in lard (ramanonaka, [ˌramaˈnunakə̥]), and a fritter flavored with chopped greens, onions, tomatoes and chilis called "spicy bread" (mofo sakay [ˌmuf saˈkaj].

Koba akondro [kubaˈkundʐʷ] is a sweet that is commonly sold at rest stops or gas stations and is made by wrapping a batter of ground peanuts, mashed bananas, honey and corn flour in banana leaves and steaming or boiling the small cakes until the batter has set. Peanut brittle, dried bananas, balls of tamarind paste rolled in colored sugar, bonbon coco (coconut balls), a snack of deep-fried wonton-type dough called "pigeon droppings" also eaten in Reunion Island (Creole kaka pizon [kaka pizõ]) and potato chips are all commonly sold on the street, as is home-made yogurt. In rural areas, steamed cassava or sweet potatoes are eaten, often with milk.

Beverages

Three Horses Beer, a Malagasy pilsner.

Ranonampango and ranovola are the most common and traditional beverages in Madagascar. In addition, a variety of other drinks are produced locally. Coffee is grown in the eastern part of the island and has become a standard breakfast drink, served black or with sweetened condensed milk at street-side kiosks. Black tea, occasionally flavored with vanilla, and herbal teas - particularly lemongrass and lemon bush (ravin'oliva [ˌravʲnoˈlivə̥] - are popular. Juices are made from guava, passion fruit, pineapple, tamarind, baobab and other fruit. In some urban areas, a hot beverage is made from powdered sweetened soy and consumed at breakfast. Fresh milk, however, is a luxury, and locally produced yogurts, ice creams or sweetened condensed milk mixed with hot water are the most common dairy sources of calcium.

A variety of alcoholic beverages are also produced for local consumption and limited export. The local pilsner, Three Horses Beer, is popular and ubiquitous. Wine is produced in the southern Highlands around Fianarantsoa, and rum (toaka gasy [ˌtokə̥ ˈɡasʲ]) is widely produced and drunk neat, flavored with exotic fruits and spices to produce rhum arrangé, or blended with coconut milk to make a punch coco cocktail. The most traditional form of rum, called betsabetsa [ˌbetsəˈbetsə̥], is made from fermented sugarcane juice. Cola and orange soft drinks are popular, as is bonbon anglais, a local sweet lemon soda.

Dessert

A slice of koba.

Traditionally, fresh fruit may be eaten after a meal as a dessert. Fresh sugarcane may also be chewed as a treat. A great variety of temperate and tropical fruits are grown locally and may be enjoyed fresh or sprinkled with sugar. Temperate fruits found in Madagascar include but are not limited to apples, lemons, pumpkins, watermelon, oranges, cherries and strawberries. Among the many tropical fruits commonly eaten in Madagascar are coconut, tamarind, mango, pineapple, avocado, passion fruit, loquats (bibasy) and guava, as well as longans, lychees, "pok-pok" (voanantsindrana, similar to a physalis), persimmon, and the fruit of the baobab tree, which is only available during a brief period near the end of the rainy season (typically March).

Madagascar is known for its high-quality cocoa and vanilla, much of which are exported. In the coastal areas of Madagascar or in upscale inland restaurants, as in several other former French island colonies such as Tahiti and Reunion, vanilla may be used to prepare savory sauces for poultry and fish.

Koban-dravina [ˌkubanˈdʐavʲnə̥], or koba [ˈkubə̥], is a Malagasy specialty made by grinding together peanuts and brown sugar, then enveloping the mixture in a sweetened rice flour paste to produce a cylindrical bundle. The bundle is wrapped in banana leaves and boiled for 24–48 hours or longer until the sugar caramelizes and the peanuts have softened. The resulting cake is served in thin slices. A firm, cake-like coconut milk pudding known as godro-godro is a popular dessert also found in Comoros. French pastries and cakes are also very popular across the island and may be purchased at the many patisseries found in towns and cities throughout Madagascar.

Imports

Several foreign dishes have been widely popularized in Madagascar and are commonly prepared at home and in restaurants. Chief among these are riz cantonais (Chinese fried rice), soupe chinoise (Chinese-style soup with noodles), Vietnamese fried noodles (mi-sao), egg rolls (nems), biryani and Indian samosas (sambos). A dish known as composé, a cold macaroni salad mixed with blanched vegetables, is a common side dish based on the French macédoine de légumes.

See also

• Cuisine of Africa