Have You Ever Been in Love?

That mysterious, unknown virgin culture of Africa, her natural beauty, her fascinating wildlife and everything about Africa is unexplained. If I were an explorer, my first quest would be Africa. The land has this magnetic quality and I can’t help but be attracted. Have you ever been in love? Then you know what t feels like, to see, to hear, to know, to love and yet you cannot touch it. I am eagerly waiting for the day when I will be able to visit this land of the first people and get to learn about their unique culture. Thanks to social networking websites, Africa and its culture does not seem so far anymore. My school friend Dhanashree introduced me Christiane Amani through a social networking website, Christiane has agreed to teach me her traditional recipes from West Africa. Just to reiterate, I love Africa and I love social networking websites.

I will be trying my first African recipe in a couple of days, as soon as I find those cooking bananas and let you know, how my first attempt to explore African cuisine and culture went.

Aloko au poulet

For 2 persons

Ingredients :

•       8 Plantains (Cooking Bananas)

•       Vegetable  oil

•       4 pieces of chicken

•       1 bottle of tomato sauce (you can use the tomato can if you want)

•       3 onions

•       4 small pieces of garlic

•       black pepper 

•       chicken maggi seasoning cubes (stock cubes)

•       Fresh pepper (Fresh Red Chillies)

•       1 root of ginger

•       Salt, bell pepper

How to cook the “Aloko?”

•       Cut the bananas lengthwise, then into thin slices.  

•       Pour out oil into a saucepan and heat until boiling.

•       Fry onion pieces until they become brown, sprinkle a bit of salt on the plantain pieces and start frying the plantain.

•       Fry both sides until reddish-brown, then very carefully remove.

How to cook the roasted chicken?

•       Seasoning for the chicken :

•          Grind onions, ginger, garlic, fresh pepper. Add black pepper, salt, chicken maggi.

•       Marinade the chicken pieces the day before and keep it in the refrigerator.

•       The next day cook them in the oven (bake 450 F) for 1hour/ or grill on a barbecue.

Tomato Soup

•       Grind onion, garlic, fresh pepper, bell pepper

•       Put in saucepan  the paste+ tomato sauce.

•       Add salt, chicken maggi. Cook it for 25 mtes. Then, put some oil to fry it.  Cook it for another 25 minutes.


PS:
There was a bunch of stuff in this recipe that I did not find and there are a few changes in the cooking time. 


Please have a look at Time for Disaster Management for the African Chicken in the Tips section for my version of the recipe.