Blog

We stand in solidarity with the people of Gaza as we witness the weaponising of food and mass starvation caused by the actions of the Israeli government. ‘What’s this got to do with a project about African diaspora fermented food?’ I hear you ask. Researching foods of the diaspora has been a bitter-sweet experience. It brings up issues of colonization, apartheid, and the use of food as a means of controlling enslaved Africans during the Transatlantic Slave Trade (We will write more about this later). The appalling situation in Gaza resonates loudly. Our thoughts are with the Palestinian people, calling for a ceasefire and an end to the weaponising of food urgently.

I’ve been itching to write something about apple cider vinegar since it plays such a big part in many Black communities across the diaspora. Like most cultures, we use it as a medicinal tonic, a preservative, a condiment, etc. Vinegars have been part of human diets globally for centuries. There are references to Egyptian vinegars dating back to 3000BCE.

Today in London, apple cider vinegar is widely available, but it can be quite pricey to buy...

As part of our project, we’re connecting with local home cooks, chefs, brewers, restaurant owners, and local fermenters to learn about traditional (and new) fermented products and practices across the African diaspora.

We recently had our first conversation with Saba, who runs Light of Africa in Brixton Village (Unit 55)...

Nigerian Guinness and Jamaican Guinness Punch. Fermentation, colonisation, community, and diasporas: these two humble beverages embody them all. Irish in origin, Guinness is hugely popular across the Caribbean and Africa. It made its way from Ireland during the Transatlantic Slave Trade via Irish migrants, merchants, plantation owners, anti-British political prisoners, indentured labourers, soldiers, etc...

Brixton Market and the surrounding area has been the source of many of the fermented foods we have found for this project. It has long been the ‘Mecca’ for the food and cultural goods serving Black communities from London and beyond.We found this amazing Pathé film footage of Granville Parade (now Brixton Village) from 1961, which is around the time my parents came to London from Ghana. They would make special trips to Brixton to...

It’s so exciting to have Kundai Moyo join Fermenting Cultures. I had the pleasure of first connecting with Kundai last year on a programme for local, Black-led community organisations. It's a massive boost to have her expertise and positive energy on the project. Kundai will be interviewing local food suppliers and producers about African and diasporan fermentation, plus looking after our social media...

There's been a lot of interest in the mainstream press about 'The Tanzanian Diet' in terms of its health benefits. This is no fad diet.

Research published in Nature Medicine journal outlines the diversity of traditional African diets, which are often rich in in vegetables, fruits, legumes, grains and fermented products. The research recognises the lack of scientific attention that African diets receive compared to...

Our ferment of the week is palm sap, and it was fun seeing if we could ferment it. Palm sap comes from particular palm trees such as date palm and coconut palm. Palm sap has a high-sugar content, so ferments quickly, and has a short shelf life. The fermented sap can be used to make palm wine, palm spirit, and palm vinegar.

Palm wine is drunk across the tropical world, often as part of traditional celebrations or poured on the ground as libations during cultural rituals....

Flashback to 2017. I got to meet one of my fermentation heroes, Sandor Katz, who came to speak in London from the States. An inspiring event, with Mr Katz sharing his knowledge and infectious enthusiasm about all things fermented. He talked about the origins of using fermentation to preserve foods, and as a means of survival in the days before refrigeration and canning. Fermented foods continue to have important nutritional...

As well as documenting African and diasporan fermented food and drink, we are documenting some of the amazing people and places that supply us with these products. First up, Esme's Organic & Herbal Products, otherwise known as Miss Esme's.

The first thing you notice is the glorious display of fresh and organic fruit and vegetables outside the shop, many sourced directly from Jamaica including avocadoes, cho-cho...

We checked out Little Baobab restaurant at The Africa Centre in Southwark. Our first time sampling Senegalese food. We were keen to try the fermented products on the menu, of which there were several. We tried the attiéké, a tangy cassava dish with a cous cous like texture; plus thiakry (also known as chakry or degue) a soured milk dessert using wholegrain millet flour, hand-rolled into tiny balls. These are then steamed and...

We found this 1993 episode of A Taste of Africa featuring the ever-fabulous Dorinda Hafner. I remember watching this when it came out and being completely in awe. Seeing a Black African woman fronting a series on mainstream British TV (Channel 4), all about African food and culture, was truly trailblaizing. Dorinda Hafner's infectious curiosity, playful humour, and knowledge are still...

These three books are very close to my heart. They represent everything that Fermenting Cultures is about: the politics of food, community, and fermenting. Dorinda Hafner's 'A Taste of Africa' book followed her ground-breaking TV series in the 1990s. It was the first time I'd ever seen African food discussed on British TV and by an African woman.

'Decolonize Your Diet' by Luz Calvo and Catriona Rueda Esquibel uses ancestral knowledge to...

This photo represents so much about the Fermenting Cultures project. A plate of ferments from Africa and the Caribbean bought in Brixton, south London. Nutritious, affordable, and made in small batches using traditional methods. I’ve consumed this kind of food all my life but never thought of it as fermented. Growing up, we never used the word 'fermented' to describe it. Many still don't.

Of course, every culture on the globe has fermenting practices. For millennia our ancestors have...