The order of mixing is important in its effect in batters and dough’s

Methods of mixing are important, where several ingredients are combined. Examples of the type of mixing are: · Sifting, or putting materials through a fine mesh, is used to lighten flour that has been packed down, to remove coarse portions, or to mix thoroughly several dry ingredients.· Stirring is done with a spoon, and is a round and round motion, used for mixing a liquid and a dry ingredient.·  Rubbing is used for combining a dry ingredient with a semi-solid substance like butter. Creaming is a term used for the rubbing...

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What is a recipe?

A recipe is a bit of experience handed down for us to make useful. Someone experimented at some time long ago, perhaps failed at first, tried again, finally succeeded, and passed on the result by word of mouth to others. There were doubtless good cooks long before there were printed or written recipes. Some recipes, however, have been handed down word of mouth from Africa to America, and recipes were printed as early as the sixteenth century. Modern recipes are much more accurate than the old, as you may see if you have opportunity to read some...

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A Personal Thank You from The African Gourmet

The main objective of our blog Everyday African Food is to promote a cross-cultural understanding of Africa through its food and art. Thank you for your support over the last four yea...

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Eating with your hands

Well technically eating with your hands means eating with small pieces of bread. Eating food with your hands in today’s society is observed as being unsanitary, unclean, bad mannered and even gross. Eating with your hand instead of using a fork and spoon is a skill that can be gratifying when done in the approved manner. Etiquette should be observed when dining in any culture that eating with your hand is a tradition. The hands must be thoroughly...

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Of the Pretty Stranger who Killed the King

Mbotu was a very famous king of Old Town, Calabar. He was frequently at war, and was always successful, as he was a most skillful leader. All the prisoners he took were made slaves. He therefore became very rich, but, on the other hand, he had many enemies. The people of Itu in particular were very angry with him and wanted to kill him, but they were not strong enough to beat Mbotu in a battle, so they had to resort to sneakiness. The Itu people had an old woman who was a witch and could turn herself into whatever she pleased, and when...

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Peanut Soup

Peanut Soup Ingredients:1 teaspoon olive oil1 medium onions, chopped1/2 large red bell peppers, chopped1 clove garlic, minced1 ripe medium size tomato, chopped2 cups vegetable broth 1 teaspoon pepper2-3 tablespoons crunchy peanut butter1/4 cup uncooked rice Directions:1. Heat oil in a large stock pot over medium high heat. Cook onions and bell peppers until tender, add garlic. Stir in tomato, vegetable broth, and pepper. Reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Stir in rice, cover and simmer 10 minutes then add  peanut...

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Vegetable Relish

2 tablespoons grated horseradishAdd all ingredients except vinegar into a large bowl and mix well. Place in hot sterilized jars and se...

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Stewed Ox Tongue

In a large coved pot braise a tongue with two glasses of wine, 1 cup carrot, 1 cup onion, thyme, bay-leaf, for two hours on low. Take tomatoes, carrots, pearl onions, and braise them all together, add salt and pepper. Braised tongue eats very well with spinach and carro...

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How to store fresh vegetables

Store in a box or bed of moist sand in the cellar. Put roots in an upright position with the sand coming just to their tops. Water the sand occasionally. Sometimes a covering of straw is added to blanch the tender growth of shoots, which is the part used as food.Late in the fall lift the roots out and carefully trim off the leaves without injury to the heart.Must not be placed in too large piles in the cellar as they are inclined to mold. Can also be buried in pits in open ground.Can remain in the ground until very cool weather; then should be...

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Fermentation with dry salting

Fermentation with dry salting consists in packing the material with a small amount of salt. No water is used, for the salt will extract the water from the vegetables and this forms a brine. This is the simplest process of all three and is used mostly for cabbage. To make sauerkraut proceed as follows: The outside green leaves of the cabbage should be removed, just as in preparing the head for boiling. Never use any decayed or bruised leaves. Quarter...

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I.N. Jewelry Designs Enchanted Spring Hope Bracelet

I.N. Jewelry Designs Enchanted Spring Hope Bracelet Sorry, I could not read the content fromt this pa...

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Chekelea means Smile in Swahili

African food is as easy to make as 1,2,3 everyday African recipes made simple. Fall in love with all things Africa as we explore the land, food and culture of a beautiful misread contine...

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The Man Who Never Lied

Once upon a time there lived a wise man by the name of Mamad. He never lied. All the people in the land, even the ones who lived twenty days away, knew about him.The king heard about Mamad and ordered his subjects to bring him to the palace. He looked at the wise man and asked:" Mamad, is it true, that you have never lied?""And you will never lie in your life?""Okay, tell the truth, but be careful! The lie is cunning and it gets on your tongue easily."Several...

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Why the Cat kills Rats

Ansa was King of Calabar for fifty years. He had a very faithful cat as a housekeeper, and a rat was his house-boy. The king was an obstinate, headstrong man, but was very fond of the cat, who had been in his store for many years. The rat, who was very poor, fell in love with one of the king's servant girls, but was unable to give her any presents, as he had no money.At last he thought of the king's store, so in the night-time, being quite small, he had little difficulty, having made a hole in the roof, in getting into the store. He...

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Curry Sauce

Curry SauceStir a small quantity of curry powder in some gravy, melted butter, or onion sauce. This must be done by degrees, according to the taste, taking care not to put in too much of the curry powd...

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Pickled Beef Tongue

1 1/2 cups white distilled vinegarCover tongue with water and salt. Cover tightly and cook slowly until tender 3 hours. Slice tongue crosswise about 1/8-inch thick. Drain all but 2 cups of the water from pan. Add the remaining ingredients and return sliced meat to pan. Simmer, covered, for 1 hour. Serve cold or wa...

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Love for Africa

....essentially the same, but modified according to its objects and by the character of the one who loves. The love of children for their parents, of parents for offspring, brotherly and sisterly love, the love of friendship, of charity, and the fervor of religious love, are modifications of the same sentiment—the attraction that draws us to our kindred, our kind; that binds together all races and humanity itself, resting on the fatherhood of God...

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Easy Baked Bananas

Remove the skins from the bananas, scrape the surface as in Fig. 14, and cut them in half lengthwise. Arrange the halves in a shallow pan. Melt the butter and mix it with the sugar and the vinegar. Pour a spoonful of the mixture over each banana and then set the pan in the oven. Bake in a slow oven for about 20 minutes, basting frequently with the remainder of the sir during the baking. Remove from the oven and serve h...

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Speak Zulu

Zulu is the language of the Zulu people with well over 9 million speakers most of whom are in South Africa. Zulu is one of South Africa's eleven official languages since 1994.Below are four easy Zulu words with their English phonetic pronunciation: iGoli [e-go?li]- Soil ihembe [e:him:mbe]- Bed uju [oo?jew]- Jumpisibili [is:see:bill?li]- Bead &nb...

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Methods of curing meat

The two most common methods of curing meat are first the brine or sugar cure process and second the dry-curing process. For general farm use the brine cured process is the better. It requires less time, less effort and not such an exacting place for the work. On most farms it is impossible to secure a desirable place in which to do the dry-curing as the meat is exposed to rats, cats, flies and other insects. The dry-curing requires considerable time to rub and salt the meat at different times while the only attention that is necessary for brine-curing...

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Pickled Green Beans

Clean and cook whole green beans. Place them in a sterile pint jar. Boil the water, vinegar, sugar and ? teaspoon salt. Pour over the beans and seal j...

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Enchanted Safe Travels Bracelet

The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page. Sorry, I could not read the content fromt this pa...

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Pomade d'Hebe

Pomade d'Hebe.—This pomade is used for the removal of wrinkles. To make: Melt one ounce of shea butter on gentle heat; add juice of lily bulbs, two ounces; add honey, two ounces; rose-water, two drams; and otto of roses, a drop or two. Use twice a day. &nb...

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Soup Fritters

Soup Fritters Beat the egg, and to it add the milk, salt, and flour. Drop the batter in tiny drops into hot fat, and fry until brown and crisp. Drain on paper and serve with the so...

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Bone, Wood and Acrylic Necklace

Discover the African Gourmet's line of jewelry on eBay by searching for the seller FunnyValentine5678....

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Cream of Carrot Soup

Cream of Carrot Soup Cook the carrots in the water until tender. Melt the fat, add dry ingredients, add gradually the 1 cup water in which the carrots were cooked and the milk. When at boiling point, serve with a little grated raw carrot sprinkled over top of soup. Any vegetable, raw or cooked, may be used in the same way, as cauliflower, cabbage, peas, turnips, e...

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Frikkadelle, an Afrikaner dish of meatballs

South African Frikkadelle is an Afrikaner dish of meatballs that's quick to make and eaten with a side of fried potatoes. FrikkadelleIngredients:1 pound ground beef1 medium onion finely chopped1 cup of dried bread crumbs1/4 cup whole milk 3 tablespoons of your favorite Chutney1 large egg1 teaspoon curry powder1 teaspoon Worcester sauceSalt and pepper to tasteDirections:Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Soak bread crumbs in milk then mix all ingredients well with clean hands, roll meat into medium size balls. Bake for 45 minutes. Serve warm with chutney...

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Preserved Pumpkin

Cut slices from a ripe pumpkin, and cut the slices into chips about the thickness of a quarter. Weigh them and allow to each pound of pumpkin equal to a pound of sugar. Cut 2 lemons in half, and squeeze the juice into a bowl along with the rind of one lemon.Place the pumpkin into a large pan laying the sugar among it. Pour the lemon-juice over it, Cover the pan, and let the pumpkin, sugar and lemon-juice, place in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours.Place the ingredients into a large pot, and boil (skimming it well) 30 minutes or until the...

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The storing of fresh vegetables

Must be kept cool with slight degrees of moisture. Use either cellar or cave methods. No potato should be more than four ft. from air if stored in barrels, boxes, crates or bins.Potatoes must be dug before the ground is crusted with frost. Frosted potatoes will spoil, one after another. Impossible to sort out frosted potatoes.Require warmth and dryness. In crates or on shelves in warm dry room. Can be spread on the floor in the room above the kitchen where they will have plenty of heat, especially for the first 2 or 3 weeks after they are dug.When...

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Riad Myra

Cette maison d'hôtes qui bénéficie d'un emplacement idéal à Fès, au cœur de la Médina, à proximité de l'Institut Français, vous accueille dans une atmosphère chaleureuse et conviviale. Construit au début du XXe siècle, le Riad Myra a été rénové et restauré par les meilleurs artisans de la ville. La splendeur est évidente dans les élégantes chambres et suites merveilleusement décorées. Le style d'architecture Maure , avec un peu de meubles antiques Anglais et des agréments modernes sont parfaitement mélangés. Le riad comporte un grand patio,...

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