Niger

Fufu is a pounded meal found in West African cuisine. It is a Twi word that originates from the Akans in Ghana. The word has been expanded to include several variations of the pounded meal found in other African countries including Sierra Leone, Guinea, Liberia, Cote D'Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Benin, Togo, Nigeria, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Central African Republic, the Republic of Congo, Angola and Gabon. It also includes variations in the Greater Antilles and Central America, where African culinary influence is high. Although the original ingredients for fufu are boiled cassava, plantains, and cocoyam, yams (Ghana), it is also made in different ways in other West African countries. In Ghana, Ivory Coast and Liberia, they use the method of separately mixing and pounding equal portions of boiled cassava with green plantain or cocoyam, or by mixing cassava/plantains or cocoyam flour with water and stirring it on a stove. Its thickness is then adjusted to personal preference, and it is eaten with broth-like soups. In Nigeria, fufu (akpu) is made solely from fermented cassava giving it its unique thickness compared to that found in other west African countries. It is eaten with a variety of soups with vegetables and lots of beef and fish. In recent years other flours, such as semolina, maize flour, or mashed plantains, may take the place of cassava flour. This is common for those in the diaspora or families that live in urban cities. Families in rural areas with access to farmland still maintain the original recipe of using cassava. Fufu is traditionally eaten with the fingers, and a small ball of it can be dipped into an accompanying soup or sauce. Before the Portuguese traders introduced cassava to Africa from Brazil in the 16th century, fufu was mainly made from cocoyam, plantain and yams. The traditional method of eating fufu is to pinch some of the fufu off in one's right hand fingers and form it into an easily ingested round ball. The ball is then dipped in the soup before being eaten.

Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of tall, perennial grass that is used for sugar production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fibrous stalks that are rich in sucrose, which accumulates in the stalk internodes. Sugarcanes belong to the grass family, Poaceae, an economically important flowering plant family that includes maize, wheat, rice, and sorghum, and many forage crops. It is native to the warm temperate and tropical regions of India, Southeast Asia, and New Guinea. Sugarcane was an ancient crop of the Austronesian and Papuan people. It was introduced to Polynesia, Island Melanesia, and Madagascar in prehistoric times via Austronesian sailors. It was also introduced to southern China and India by Austronesian traders around 1200 to 1000 BC. The Persians and Greeks encountered the famous "reeds that produce honey without bees" in India between the sixth and fourth centuries BC. They adopted and then spread sugarcane agriculture. Merchants began to trade in sugar, which was considered a luxurious and expensive spice, from India. In the 18th century, sugarcane plantations began in the Caribbean, South American, Indian Ocean, and Pacific island nations. The need for sugar crop laborers became a major driver of large migrations, some people voluntarily accepting indentured servitude and others forcibly imported as slaves.

Beignet is a type of deep-fried pastry of French origin. It is commonly made from pâte à choux, but can also be made using rice flour (rice beignets) or yeast-leavened batters. Beignets can be served in a variety of preparations, the most common being dusted with confectioner’s sugar. The pastry is popular in French, Italian, and American cuisines. A traditional way beignets are prepared is using choux pastry dough. Otherwise known as the French-style beignet, this type of dough is typically made using butter, milk or water, sugar, flour, and salt. Choux pastry is versatile and is prepared differently by culture. The pâte à choux method is also the style of beignets that were introduced to New Orleans by French immigrants in the 1700s. Variations often include banana or plantain – popular fruits in the port city – or berries. Other variations include savory fillings such as meat and cheese fillings.

The term Leben, variously laban, liben, lben // ⓘ in the Middle East and North Africa, refers to a food or beverage of fermented milk. Generally, there are two main products known as leben: The yogurt variant for the Levant region and the buttermilk variant for parts of Arabia and North Africa (Maghreb). Leben can be served at breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Leben as a drink is traditionally prepared by letting milk ferment for around 24 hours, then churning and removing the butter. The remaining buttermilk can keep for several days at room temperature. In modern times, it is produced industrially. Leben in parts of the Middle East is traditionally prepared by boiling milk, usually whole milk, then adding yogurt (or previously made, left over/store-bought leben), and then cooled overnight.

Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals before they are able to digest solid food. Immune factors and immune-modulating components in milk contribute to milk immunity. Early-lactation milk, which is called colostrum, contains antibodies that strengthen the immune system and thus reduce the risk of many diseases. Milk contains many nutrients, including calcium and protein, but also lactose and saturated fat.

Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of Camellia sinensis, an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and northern Myanmar. Tea is also made, but rarely, from the leaves of Camellia taliensis. After plain water, tea is the most widely consumed drink in the world. There are many different types of tea; some have a cooling, slightly bitter, and astringent flavour, while others have profiles that include sweet, nutty, floral, or grassy notes. Tea has a stimulating effect in humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. An early credible record of tea drinking dates to the third century AD, in a medical text written by Chinese physician Hua Tuo. It was popularised as a recreational drink during the Chinese Tang dynasty, and tea drinking subsequently spread to other East Asian countries. Portuguese priests and merchants introduced it to Europe during the 16th century. During the 17th century, drinking tea became fashionable among the English, who started to plant tea on a large scale in British India.

Skewered and grilled meat, chicken, pork, goat, beef, fish, scallops, prawns, venison, vegetables

A camel from Ancient Semitic: gāmāl) is an even-toed ungulate in the genus Camelus that bears distinctive fatty deposits known as "humps" on its back. Camels have long been domesticated and, as livestock, they provide food (camel milk and meat) and textiles (fiber and felt from camel hair). Camels are working animals especially suited to their desert habitat and are a vital means of transport for passengers and cargo. There are three surviving species of camel. The one-humped dromedary makes up 94% of the world's camel population, and the two-humped Bactrian camel makes up 6%. The wild Bactrian camel is a distinct species that is not ancestral to the domestic Bactrian camel, and is now critically endangered, with fewer than 1,000 individuals. The word camel is also used informally in a wider sense, where the more correct term is "camelid", to include all seven species of the family Camelidae: the true camels (the above three species), along with the "New World" camelids: the llama, the alpaca, the guanaco, and the vicuña, which belong to the separate tribe Lamini. Camelids originated in North America during the Eocene, with the ancestor of modern camels, Paracamelus, migrating across the Bering land bridge into Asia during the late Miocene, around 6 million years ago.

Shawarma is a Middle Eastern dish that originated in the Levant region of the Arab world during the Ottoman Empire, consisting of meat that is cut into thin slices, stacked in an inverted cone, and roasted on a slow-turning vertical spit. Traditionally made with lamb or mutton, it may also be made with chicken, turkey, beef, or veal. The surface of the rotisserie meat is routinely shaved off once it cooks and is ready to be served. Shawarma is a popular street food throughout the Arab world and the Greater Middle East. The name shāwarmā in Arabic is a rendering of the term çevirme in Ottoman Turkish (چيويرمى [tʃeviɾˈme], lit. 'turning'), referring to rotisserie. Although the roasting of meat on horizontal spits has an ancient history, the shawarma technique—grilling a vertical stack of meat slices and cutting it off as it cooks—first appeared in the Ottoman Empire in the 19th century in the form of döner kebab, which both the Greek gyros and the Levantine shawarma are derived from. Shawarma, in turn, led to the development during the early 20th century of the contemporary Mexican dish tacos al pastor when it was brought there by Lebanese immigrants. The dish is also especially popular in Ottawa, Ontario, where a large community of the Lebanese diaspora exists.

Couscous is a traditional North African dish of small[a] steamed granules of rolled semolina that is often served with a stew spooned on top. Pearl millet, sorghum, bulgur, and other cereals are sometimes cooked in a similar way in other regions, and the resulting dishes are also sometimes called couscous.: 18  Couscous is a staple food throughout the Maghrebi cuisines of Algeria, Tunisia, Mauritania, Morocco, and Libya.: 250  It was integrated into French and European cuisine at the beginning of the twentieth century, through the French colonial empire and the Pieds-Noirs of Algeria.

Small savory bean flour dumplings, serve with oil, chili peppers, tomatoes, onions

Tomato stew, served with maca

Stewed chicken, vegetables, peanut butter, herbs and spices

Spicy chickpea soup

Meat stew with white beans

Efo riro is a vegetable soup and a native soup of the Yoruba people of South West Nigeria and other parts of Yorubaland. The two vegetables most commonly used to prepare the soup are Celosia argentea (ṣọkọ̀ yòkòtò) and Amaranthus hybridus (ẹ̀fọ́ tẹ̀tẹ̀). The history of Efo riro is deeply rooted in the Yoruba culture. It was traditionally prepared with the locally grown vegetables, meat, fish, and a mixture of spices. The choice of vegetables and proteins varies based on personal preference and regional availability. The most commonly used vegetables are spinach, pumpkin leaves, or sorrel leaves, often combined with bell peppers, chili peppers, and onions. Efo riro is a staple in Yoruba land and is often served at home and during traditional ceremonies. It is typically eaten with iyan, fufu, eba, amala, or other types of okele or "swallow" foods. Over time, the popularity of Efo riro has spread across Nigeria and beyond, with many variations of the dish emerging.

Stewed black-eyed peas with plantains

Fufu is a pounded meal found in West African cuisine. It is a Twi word that originates from the Akans in Ghana. The word has been expanded to include several variations of the pounded meal found in other African countries including Sierra Leone, Guinea, Liberia, Cote D'Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Benin, Togo, Nigeria, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Central African Republic, the Republic of Congo, Angola and Gabon. It also includes variations in the Greater Antilles and Central America, where African culinary influence is high. Although the original ingredients for fufu are boiled cassava, plantains, and cocoyam, yams (Ghana), it is also made in different ways in other West African countries. In Ghana, Ivory Coast and Liberia, they use the method of separately mixing and pounding equal portions of boiled cassava with green plantain or cocoyam, or by mixing cassava/plantains or cocoyam flour with water and stirring it on a stove. Its thickness is then adjusted to personal preference, and it is eaten with broth-like soups. In Nigeria, fufu (akpu) is made solely from fermented cassava giving it its unique thickness compared to that found in other west African countries. It is eaten with a variety of soups with vegetables and lots of beef and fish. In recent years other flours, such as semolina, maize flour, or mashed plantains, may take the place of cassava flour. This is common for those in the diaspora or families that live in urban cities. Families in rural areas with access to farmland still maintain the original recipe of using cassava. Fufu is traditionally eaten with the fingers, and a small ball of it can be dipped into an accompanying soup or sauce. Before the Portuguese traders introduced cassava to Africa from Brazil in the 16th century, fufu was mainly made from cocoyam, plantain and yams. The traditional method of eating fufu is to pinch some of the fufu off in one's right hand fingers and form it into an easily ingested round ball. The ball is then dipped in the soup before being eaten.

Attieke with fried pieces of tuna, onions, tomatoes and chili peppers

Goat meat is the meat of the domestic goat . The common name for goat meat is "goat meat", while meat from young goats can be called "kid meat", capretto (Italian), and cabrito (Spanish and Portuguese). In South Asian cuisine, mutton refers to goat meat. The culinary name "chevon", a blend of chèvre "goat" in French and mouton "sheep" in French, was coined in 1922 and selected by a trade association; it was adopted by the United States Department of Agriculture in 1928,: 19  however the term never caught on and is not encountered in the United States. "Cabrito", a word in Spanish and Portuguese, is the meat of a young, milk-fed goat. It is also known as chivo meat. Goat meat is both a staple and a delicacy in the world's cuisines. The cuisines best known for their use of goat include African cuisine, Middle Eastern, Indian, Indonesian, Nepali, Bangladeshi, Pakistani, Abruzzese, Mexican, Caribbean (Jamaica), Haitian cuisine, Dominican cuisine and Ecuadorian. Cabrito, which is baby goat, is a very typical food of Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico; in Italy it is called "capretto". Goat meat can be prepared in a variety of ways, such as being stewed, curried, baked, grilled, barbecued, minced, canned, fried, or made into sausage. Goat jerky is also another popular variety.

Okra , Abelmoschus esculentus, known in some English-speaking countries as lady's fingers, is a flowering plant in the mallow family native to East Africa. It has edible green seed pods. Cultivated in tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions around the world, okra is used in the cuisines of many countries. Abelmoschus is Neo-Latin from Arabic: أَبُو المِسْك, romanized: ʾabū l-misk, lit. 'father of musk', while esculentus is Latin for being fit for human consumption.

Guineafowl are birds of the family Numididae in the order Galliformes. They are endemic to Africa and rank among the oldest of the gallinaceous birds. Phylogenetically, they branched off from the core Galliformes after the Cracidae (chachalacas, guans, and curassows) and before the Odontophoridae (New World quail). An Eocene fossil lineage Telecrex has been associated with guineafowl; Telecrex inhabited Mongolia, and may have given rise to the oldest of the true phasianids, such as blood pheasants and eared pheasants, which evolved into high-altitude, montane-adapted species with the rise of the Tibetan Plateau. While modern guineafowl species are endemic to Africa, the helmeted guineafowl has been introduced as a domesticated bird widely elsewhere. This is a list of guineafowl species, presented in taxonomic order.

Indomie is a brand of instant noodle produced by the Indonesian company Indofood. Indofood itself is the largest instant noodle producer in the world with 16 factories. Over 28 billion packets of Indomie are produced annually,[citation needed] and the brand is also exported to more than 90 countries around the world. Indomie has been produced mainly in Indonesia since it was first introduced in June 1972; it has also been produced in Nigeria since 1995, and in Turkey since 2010. Indomie has become increasingly popular in Nigeria and other African countries since its introduction there in the 1980s. Indomie's name is derived from "indo" for "Indonesia" and "mie", an older spelling of the Indonesian word for "noodles", "mi".

Jollof , or jollof rice, is a rice dish from West Africa. The dish is typically made with long-grain rice, tomatoes, chilies, onions, spices, and sometimes other vegetables and/or meat in a single pot, although its ingredients and preparation methods vary across different regions. The dish's origins are traced to Senegal. Regional variations are a source of competition among the countries of West Africa, and in particular between Nigeria and Ghana, over whose version is the best; in the 2010s this developed into a friendly rivalry known as the "Jollof Wars".

Moin-moin or moi-moi is a steamed or boiled bean pudding made from a mixture of washed and peeled beans and onions, fresh red peppers, spices, and often fish, eggs,chicken and/or crayfish. It is a protein-rich Yoruba food that is commonly eaten across Yorubaland and close regions in West Africa. Moi-moi is made of soaked beans ground into a fine paste which is mixed with dried crayfish, vegetable oil, and seasonings. Some add sardines, corned beef,shredded chicken, sliced boiled eggs, or other garnishes.

Ogbono soup is a Nigerian dish made with ground dry ogbono seeds. Ogbono seeds are originated and were first grown in Southern Nigeria with considerable local variation. According to research by Chris Chinaka and J.C. Obiefuna, Ogbono is an indigenous forest tree associated with plants classified as 'non-timber forest products. It goes by various indigenous names among Nigerians. The Common use of the word “ogbono” in general Nigerian parlance stems from the Igbo name for the word. Among the Nupe, it is called 'pekpeara', 'ogwi' in Bini, 'uyo' in Efik, and 'oro' or ‘apon’ in Yoruba. Although ogbono (dika nut) and ugiri, the Igbo name for bush-mango, are very similar indeed and often regarded as equivalents, there is technically a distinction. The ground ogbono seeds are used as a thickener, and give the soup a black coloration. Besides seeds, water and palm oil, it typically contains meat and/or fish seasonings such as chili pepper, salt, crayfish, leaf vegetables and other vegetables. Typical leaf vegetables include bitterleaf and celosia. Typical other vegetables include tomatoes and okra. Typical seasonings include chiles, onions, and iru (fermented locust beans). Typical meats include beef, goat, fish, chicken, bushmeat, shrimp, or crayfish. It can be eaten with fufu, semo, wheat swallow, or with pounded yam. In other countries the soup may be available in packaged prepared form in some markets that specialize in Western African foods. Ogbono soup has a mucilaginous draw texture, similar to okra soup.

Palm nut soup or banga is a soup made from palm fruit common in the Cameroonian, Ghanaian, Nigerian, Democratic Republic of Congo and Ivorian communities. The soup is made from a palm cream or palm nut base with stewed marinated meats, smoked dried fish, and aromatics. It is often eaten with starch, fufu, omotuo, banku, fonio, or rice. The use of the palm fruit in cooking is significant in Ivorian, Cameronian, Nigerian, Ghanaian, Liberian and other West and Central African cuisine. Mbanga soup is a palm fruit soup in Cameroonian cuisine and West African cuisine. It is often served with kwacoco. The soup is Cameroon's version of the West African banga, a palm fruit soup eaten in areas including parts of Nigeria. In Cameroon mbanga is made using fresh palm nuts. Outside the area canned nuts can be used. Banga is a type of palm fruit soup from Southern Nigeria, particularly the itsekiri ethnic group. This cuisine is quite different from ofe akwu, a variant found in Igbo culture. The Binis have a soup from palm fruits similar to ofe akwu" in ingredients and manner of preparation. The Yoruba people palm nut soup is called Obe Eyin.

Ruminants are herbivorous grazing or browsing artiodactyls belonging to the suborder Ruminantia that are able to acquire nutrients from plant-based food by fermenting it in a specialized stomach prior to digestion, principally through microbial actions. The process, which takes place in the front part of the digestive system and therefore is called foregut fermentation, typically requires the fermented ingesta to be regurgitated and chewed again. The process of rechewing the cud to further break down plant matter and stimulate digestion is called rumination. The word "ruminant" comes from the Latin ruminare, which means "to chew over again". The roughly 200 species of ruminants include both domestic and wild species. Ruminating mammals include cattle, all domesticated and wild bovines, goats, sheep, giraffes, deer, gazelles, and antelopes. It has also been suggested that notoungulates also relied on rumination, as opposed to other atlantogenates that rely on the more typical hindgut fermentation, though this is not entirely certain.

Porridge is a food made by heating or boiling ground, crushed or chopped starchy plants, typically grain, in milk or water. It is often cooked or served with added flavourings such as sugar, honey, fruit, or syrup to make a sweet cereal, or it can be mixed with spices, meat, or vegetables to make a savoury dish. It is usually served hot in a bowl, depending on its consistency. Oat porridge, or oatmeal, is one of the most common types of porridge. Gruel is a thinner version of porridge and congee is a savoury variation of porridge of Asian origin. The term "porridge" is used in Britain and Ireland specifically for oatmeal. This is a hot mixture of oatmeal or oats slowly cooked with water or milk. It is typically eaten for breakfast by itself or with other ingredients, including salt, sugar, fruit, milk, cream, or butter.

Mutton stew with dumplings

Grilled pigeon

Fermented porridge made with cornmeal, millet, sorghum

Yassa is a spicy dish prepared with onions and either marinated poultry, marinated fish or marinated lamb. Originally from Senegal, yassa has become popular throughout West Africa. Chicken yassa , prepared with onions, lemon or mustard, is a specialty from Senegal. Other meats used for yassa are lamb and fish.

Fermented cassava couscous, serve with fried or smoked fish, onions, tomatoes and chili peppers

Fruit from the date palm. A common snack, dessert.

Deep-fried plantain slices

Fonio, also sometimes called findi or acha, is the term for two cultivated grasses in the genus Digitaria that are important crops in parts of West Africa. The nutritious food with a favorable taste is a vital food source in many rural areas, especially in the mountains of Fouta Djalon, Guinea but it is also cultivated in Mali, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, and Senegal. The global fonio market was estimated at 721,400 tonnes in 2020. Guinea annually produces the most fonio in the world, accounting for over 75% of the world's production in 2019. The name fonio is from Wolof foño. In West Africa, the species black fonio (Digitaria iburua) and white fonio (Digitaria exilis) are cultivated; the latter is the economically more important crop. Fonio is a glumaceous monocot belonging to the grass family Poaceae and the genus Digitaria. While hundreds of these crabgrass species exist, only a few of them are produced for their grains. It is a small annual herbaceous plant with an inflorescence containing two or three racemes. The racemes have spikelets grouped in twos, threes, or fours, with a sterile and a fertile flower producing the fonio grain. Fonio has a short growing season and is well adjusted to harsh environments. The size of their root system, which can extend down to more than one meter in depth is advantageous in periods of drought, and helps with its adaptation to poor soils. Once considered a humble and often overlooked grain commonly known as the "cereal of the poor," fonio is now gaining attention in urban West Africa. Its unique cooking properties and nutritional benefits are sparking renewed interest in this once underrated staple. White fonio, Digitaria exilis, also called "hungry rice" by Europeans, is the most common of a diverse group of wild and domesticated Digitaria species that are harvested in the savannas of West Africa. Fonio has the smallest seeds of all species of millet. It has potential to improve nutrition, boost food security, foster rural development, and support sustainable use of the land.

Dates, mango, plantain

Cooked dough balls made with ground pearl millet and spices, eaten alone as a snack or used to make fura da nono, a beverage made with fura balls and fermented milk or yogurt

Attieke with fried pieces of tuna, onions, tomatoes and chili peppers

Okra , Abelmoschus esculentus, known in some English-speaking countries as lady's fingers, is a flowering plant in the mallow family native to East Africa. It has edible green seed pods. Cultivated in tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions around the world, okra is used in the cuisines of many countries. Abelmoschus is Neo-Latin from Arabic: أَبُو المِسْك, romanized: ʾabū l-misk, lit. 'father of musk', while esculentus is Latin for being fit for human consumption.

Fonio, pearl millet, rice, sorghum, wheat

Kilishi is a version of jerky that originates in Hausaland which consists of most of Southern Niger and Northern Nigeria. It is a form of dried meat, typically made with beef, Lamb and mutton or chevon. It is just like a dried form of Suya and it's produced from slabs of meat seasoned with salt, pepper and spices, smoked and dried. It is sun-dried to preserve it for long-term storage. It is a Nigerian delicacy commonly eaten with pap and cassava flakes (garri). Kilishi might have originated in the period of Jihad, when cattle were moved to different areas for protection. Creating dried meats became a convenient way to preserve food and avoid spoilage. Kilishi, believed to have come from the Hausa people in Niger, has transcended its regional roots, gaining popularity throughout the entire Hausaland (Southern Niger and Northern Nigeria). Its appeal extends further, with widespread consumption in Cameroon, Chad, and across the broader region. Kilishi can serve as an appetizer, a main course or a side dish with its different textures and flavours. It is prepared by drying thin strips of meat in the sun. Generally it is made with beef but can also be prepared from camel, lamb, and goat. These strips are then coated in a paste made from peanuts and various condiments and vegetables, such as onion, and multiple spices. The resulting product is left to dry for a few hours in the sun and then roasted for a few minutes over high heat. There are significant variations in preparation methods across the region. Kilishi was born out of necessity, to preserve meat for longer as the lean meat supplies protein enough for merchants traveling through the Sahara for trade.

Macaroni, spaghetti noodles with chili powder or tomato sauce, eaten by itself, served with deguidegui

A nut is a fruit consisting of a hard or tough nutshell protecting a kernel which is usually edible. In general usage and in a culinary sense, many dry seeds are called nuts. In a botanical context, "nut" implies that the shell does not open to release the seed . Most seeds come from fruits that naturally free themselves from the shell, but this is not the case in nuts such as hazelnuts, chestnuts, and acorns, which have hard shell walls and originate from a compound ovary. The general and original usage of the term is less restrictive, and many nuts (in the culinary sense), such as almonds, pistachios, and Brazil nuts, are not nuts in a botanical sense. Common usage of the term often refers to any hard-walled, edible kernel as a nut. Nuts are an energy-dense and nutrient-rich food source.

A salad is a dish consisting of mixed ingredients, frequently vegetables. They are typically served chilled or at room temperature, though some can be served warm. Condiments and salad dressings, which exist in a variety of flavors, are used to make a salad. Garden salads use a base of leafy greens such as lettuce, arugula or rocket, kale or spinach; they are common enough that the word salad alone often refers specifically to garden salads. Other types include bean salad, tuna salad, bread salad , vegetable salads without leafy greens (such as Greek salad, potato salad, coleslaw), rice-, pasta- and noodle-based salads, fruit salads and desserts.