10 Unique & Traditional Christmas Dishes From Africa
10 Unique And Traditional Christmas Dishes From Africa
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If you’ve spent most of your holiday celebrations in the U.S., then traditional Christmas dishes like honey-baked ham, gingerbread cookies and gravy have likely been staples of your big holiday feasts. But those are the white-washed American Christmas foods. Millions of people around the world in very different cultures from our own celebrate Christmas, and their dinner tables looks completely different from what you find here.
In Africa, 350 million people celebrate Christmas. It’s a very festive time of year filled with street parades, large outdoor barbecues and foods that would excite your taste buds. If you’ve grown tired of traditional Christmas dishes with primarily American and Eastern European origins, you might want to try some of the mouthwatering, flavorful and colorful traditional African Christmas recipes. Plus, if you have African ancestors, making these dishes is a beautiful (and delicious) way to honor your heritage.
Side Dishes
Sambals
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Sambals is the name for a popular side dish of which there can be many variations. The core of any sambals recipe will typically have finely chopped or grated raw vegetables with vinegar and spices. One common recipe calls for grated carrots and apples with garlic, ginger and rice wine. It all comes together as a bright and zesty slaw-like food that’s nice to pair with heavier items. In different parts of Africa, sambals can take on different core ingredients. Sometimes diced cucumber is the main ingredient and you wind up with more of a refreshing chutney-like dish to have with meats.
Classic Potato Bake
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Instead of mashed potatoes this year, try this creamy, comforting South African dish. Its main ingredients include thinly-sliced potatoes, some cream and some cheese. Adding onion soup for a burst of flavor is popular, and from there it’s fun to dress it up with special flavors you like from bacon to mushrooms to a South African dried meat called biltong.
Jollof Rice
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Where there is a celebration in an African household, there is often jollof rice. This super flavorful rice dish can be made on the stovetop or in the oven. It’s often moistened with tomato (which also gives it a gorgeous red hue) along with chicken broth and then flavored with spices like thyme, garlic, paprika and occasionally hot pepper for those who like a kick. From there, you add veggies of your choosing – carrots, corn and green peas go great in this dish.
Entrees
Nyama Choma
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Nyama Choma is an East African dish that consists of a variety of roasted meats including goat, lamb or beef. The meat is marinated in spices such as cumin and paprika, (though some say the most authentic variety uses nothing more than salt and pepper) before it’s put on the grill. Topping it off with some lemon juice or having it with red onions is common.
Gammon
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South Africans do have their version of baked ham, but it’s called gammon and it is the hind leg of pork that’s been cured and sometimes smoked. However, while Americans pick up their Christmas ham cooked and ready to eat, South Africans pick up a raw Gammon and cook it to their liking at home. It’s common to make a glaze or sauce to put over it. Many popular varieties are made with brandy and coke or honey and Dijon mustard.
Curried Goat Stew
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Goat meat is a staple at special occasions in Africa. And at a really important meal, it’s typical to find curried goat stew. This tender, spicy stew contains goat meat that’s been slow-cooked for a couple of hours, fried with curry and combined with bold ingredients like ginger, garlic and onion. Many spices and herbs go into this dish, like parsley, white pepper and fresh thyme. It pairs great with jollof rice and plantains.
Bamia
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Bamia is one of those traditional Christmas dishes you will want to have year-round. It’s okra cooked with tomatoes and is a traditional Egyptian recipe. Sometimes it’s called Egyptian Okra Stew and will usually contain a tender meat like lamb or venison (or both). With dried lemons, chilis, coriander and cardamom, it’s rich with a variety of flavors that are bright, bold and zesty.
Dessert
Malva Pudding
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This sweet, moist and sticky dessert from South Africa will make you forget all about American Christmas foods like bread pudding; it conveniently goes just as well with vanilla ice cream or custard. It’s made with apricot jam, sugar and balsamic vinegar and is traditionally eaten warm. Some people enjoy it with a glass of sweet dessert wine.
Trifle
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This layered dessert is popular in South Africa and consists of cake, fruit, jelly and custard, all piled on top of each other for a dish that’s fluffy, moist, creamy and fresh. Some put Amarula Cream liqueur in it (also a popular dessert beverage in Africa) and caramel.
Coupe Mount Kenya
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This is one of the more simple African recipes but it’s so yummy. It’s a refreshing and light dessert named after the tallest mountain in Kenya. At its core, it is mango ice cream with pineapple rum sauce. Some add chopped nuts to it and it pairs perfectly with warm, fluffy desserts like malva pudding.
