For hundreds of many years, food items on the African continent has been preserved without having the gain of refridgeration. How? This report describes four approaches of food items preservation widespread in Africa.
1. Solar-drying
For many Africans, the sunlight is an important factor in foodstuff preservation. Soon right after the harvest, grains these kinds of as millet, maize, sorghum, green gram, and wheat, as well as pulses this sort of as beans and peas are distribute out in the solar to dry. If completely dried of moisture, these foodstuffs can last a pretty lengthy time – sometimes a long time – if stored in a awesome, dry place and shielded from pests.
Most households had a granary built way over the floor, where by foodstuffs were being stored. In addition to drying, it was also frequent to utilize wooden ash to pulses like beans and peas to discourage insect infestation. The ash could quickly be washed out in advance of cooking the pulses.
A variety of styles of greens, tubers and fish can also be correctly preserved in this way. Tubers these types of as cassava or sweet potato may possibly have to be sliced into thin items to facilitate drying.
2. Cigarette smoking
Smoking cigarettes is another significant method of foods preservation. Previously, after the hunt, hunters smoked huge amounts of the meat for easier transportation again household, and also to protect it. It was popular to smoke activity meat, whilst domestic animals ended up often consumed fresh new after slaughtering.
Smoking cigarettes fish is still a very important technique of preserving fish, utilised all above the continent.
3. Salting
Salt was frequently used to foodstuffs in get to protect them, in conjunction with solar-drying and smoking cigarettes. Several fisherman generously salt fish right before sun-drying or smoking it, to further more strengthen the prospects that it will not decay. Salting was also utilized to certain greens all through the sun-drying procedure.
4. Working with body fat
A few communities employed fats to protect foods. These were being mainly communities that herded animals, these as nomadic communities. For illustration, among the the Somali, when a camel was slaughtered, part of the meat was cooked in generous quantities of fat and salt. It was then saved for upcoming use. The meat remained acceptable for human intake since of the huge quantities of body fat in which it was cooked and stored, and the salt.
Numerous components of Africa still do not have the important electrical infrastructure necessary for sustained refridgeration. Common strategies of foods preservation proceed to engage in a crucial job in preserving meals edible for thousands and thousands of people.
These techniques, this kind of as sunshine-drying, smoking, salting and making use of excess fat, have not only stood the examination of time – they are also inexpensive and sustainable without the need of necessitating also a lot vitality.
