{"id":14444,"date":"2016-03-04T06:36:25","date_gmt":"2016-03-04T06:36:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.afrizap.com\/en\/?p=14444"},"modified":"2016-11-28T16:26:12","modified_gmt":"2016-11-28T16:26:12","slug":"african-food","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.afrizap.com\/en\/african-food","title":{"rendered":"A Senegalese Chef Traces The Origins Of Many American Foods To West Africa"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"a6b39195b99473d6c9dd698db2668010\" data-index=\"1\" style=\"float: none; margin:2px 0 2px 0; text-align:center;\">\n<center>\r\n\r\n<script type='text\/javascript'>\r\nfunction ShorterThan(widthMax) {\r\n                if (screen.width < widthMax) {return true;}  \r\n                else {return false}\r\n    }\r\nvar LimitWidth = 728\r\nvar MobileZoneID = 348996\r\nvar DesktopZoneID = 348995   \r\n<!--\/\/<![CDATA[\r\n   document.MAX_ct0 ='';\r\n   var m3_u = (location.protocol=='https:'?'https:\/\/cas.criteo.com\/delivery\/ajs.php?':'https:\/\/cas.criteo.com\/delivery\/ajs.php?');\r\n   var m3_r = Math.floor(Math.random()*99999999999);\r\n   document.write (\"<scr\"+\"ipt type='text\/javascript' src='\"+m3_u);\r\n   if (ShorterThan(LimitWidth)) {document.write (\"zoneid=\"+MobileZoneID);} else {document.write (\"zoneid=\"+DesktopZoneID);}\r\n   document.write(\"&nodis=1\");\r\n   document.write ('&cb=' + m3_r);\r\n   if (document.MAX_used != ',') document.write (\"&exclude=\" + document.MAX_used);\r\n   document.write (document.charset ? '&charset='+document.charset : (document.characterSet ? '&charset='+document.characterSet : ''));\r\n   document.write (\"&loc=\" + escape(window.location));\r\n   if (document.referrer) document.write (\"&referer=\" + escape(document.referrer));\r\n   if (document.context) document.write (\"&context=\" + escape(document.context));\r\n   if ((typeof(document.MAX_ct0) != 'undefined') && (document.MAX_ct0.substring(0,4) == 'http')) {\r\n       document.write (\"&ct0=\" + escape(document.MAX_ct0));\r\n   }\r\n   if (document.mmm_fo) document.write (\"&mmm_fo=1\");\r\n   document.write (\"'><\/scr\"+\"ipt>\");\r\n\/\/]]>--><\/script>\r\n<\/center>\n<\/div>\n<p>It may surprise you to learn that American cuisine has roots in West African food. Pierre Thiam, a Senegalese chef and author, traced many American dishes back to his country of origin.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Using food to build connections<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Thiam moved to New York City in the 1980s. He still lives there with his wife and three children. He has owned two restaurants that mostly attracted Africans living in the city as well as curious New Yorkers wanting to learn more about African food. Prior to starting his businesses, Thiam worked in several culinary establishments specialized in Western cuisine.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>\u201cI worked at an Italian restaurant, at various French bistros but never for an African one. I was in New York where food cultures from all over the world are represented when I asked myself, why not do a research on food in my country of origin?\u201d he recalled. \u00a0<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">He began to research African food and learned a lot when he visited his parents in Senegal. <\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>\u201cI took their recipes and adapted them to make a modern cuisine.\u201d His research also uncovered something interesting &#8211; \u201cIt\u2019s around that time I realized that there were many dishes in America that were similar to African dishes.\u201d<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<figure id=\"attachment_14448\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-14448\" style=\"width: 700px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-14448\" src=\"https:\/\/www.afrizap.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/03\/pierre-thiam-gear-patrol-full-lead-1.jpg\" alt=\"source\" width=\"700\" height=\"469\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.afrizap.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/03\/pierre-thiam-gear-patrol-full-lead-1.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.afrizap.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/03\/pierre-thiam-gear-patrol-full-lead-1-600x402.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.afrizap.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/03\/pierre-thiam-gear-patrol-full-lead-1-85x57.jpg 85w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-14448\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><a href=\"https:\/\/africasacountry.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Pierre-Thiam-Gear-Patrol-full-lead.jpg\">source<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>Dishes with African origins<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Thiam began to notice how much African food had influenced America, especially when he traveled to the southern half of the country.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>\u201cJambalaya (mixed rice, meat and vegetables), feijoada (black beans and meat), gombo (okra), and hoppin\u2019 johns (peas) are all dishes that have been re-adapted from Senegal, Nigeria, Guinea and Benin. You will find variations of these dishes in America and the Caribbean region,\u201d he said. \u201cIf you go to New Orleans, you will find many other dishes that originated from Africa such as roasted cassava, gombo, acaraj\u00e9 to name but a few.\u201d<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<figure id=\"attachment_14445\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-14445\" style=\"width: 711px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\" wp-image-14445\" src=\"https:\/\/www.afrizap.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/03\/1015_senegal-stew-01-624x457.jpg\" alt=\"source\" width=\"711\" height=\"521\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.afrizap.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/03\/1015_senegal-stew-01-624x457.jpg 624w, https:\/\/www.afrizap.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/03\/1015_senegal-stew-01-624x457-600x439.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.afrizap.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/03\/1015_senegal-stew-01-624x457-85x62.jpg 85w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 711px) 100vw, 711px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-14445\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><a href=\"https:\/\/s3.amazonaws.com\/media.wbur.org\/wordpress\/11\/files\/2015\/10\/1015_senegal-stew-01-624x457.jpg\">source<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>Slavery\u2019s influence<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">How did African and American cuisine mix? African slaves sold in America influenced American food.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>\u201cIt\u2019s not surprising that Africans brought their cuisine with them. It kept them going for centuries,\u201d Thiam said.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">He has helped raise awareness of their impact. For last year\u2019s International Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade, Thiam created a special meal. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>\u201cI presented a menu that showed just how much the eating habits of African slaves influenced the food culture in the US and the Americas in general. The ingredients and recipes came from Africa during the transatlantic slave trade.\u201d\u00a0<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">He served five dishes. One of them was a rice pudding, called <em>sombi<\/em> in Senegal. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>\u201cThe rice pudding is symbolic. I chose it because many do not acknowledge Africa\u2019s contribution to the American cuisine. Can you imagine America without rice?\u201d\u00a0<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">African rice came to America on the slave ships. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>\u201cThat is why the middle passage, or journey of slaves from the African coast to Europe, is important because it helped transform the culinary landscape of the Americas. It\u2019s a part of history that is not talked about often.\u201d<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Thiam\u2019s sees his work as a way of honoring the victims of slavery. <\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u00a0<\/span><strong>\u201cThey are the ones who brought this heritage here and who have allowed us to survive.\u201d<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<figure id=\"attachment_14447\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-14447\" style=\"width: 707px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\" wp-image-14447\" src=\"https:\/\/www.afrizap.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/03\/le-sombi-riz-au-lait-a-la-senegalaise-10-618x412.jpg\" alt=\"source\" width=\"707\" height=\"471\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.afrizap.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/03\/le-sombi-riz-au-lait-a-la-senegalaise-10-618x412.jpg 618w, https:\/\/www.afrizap.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/03\/le-sombi-riz-au-lait-a-la-senegalaise-10-618x412-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.afrizap.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/03\/le-sombi-riz-au-lait-a-la-senegalaise-10-618x412-85x57.jpg 85w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 707px) 100vw, 707px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-14447\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><a href=\"https:\/\/nofi.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/Le-Sombi-Riz-au-lait-%C3%A0-la-s%C3%A9n%C3%A9galaise-10-618x412.jpg\">source<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.afrizap.com\/en\/african-superfoods\">SEE ALSO:\u00a08 African Superfoods You Should Start Eating Now.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<!--CusAds0-->\n<div style=\"font-size: 0px; height: 0px; line-height: 0px; margin: 0; padding: 0; clear: both;\"><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It may surprise you to learn that American cuisine has roots in West African food.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":14448,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[45,111,110],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v20.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>A Senegalese Chef Traces The Origins Of Many American Foods To West Africa<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"African rice came to America on the slave ships.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.afrizap.com\/en\/african-food\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A Senegalese Chef Traces The Origins Of Many American Foods To West Africa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"African rice 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