Food of Tanzania - Chakula Cha Tanzania

Now that we've been here for a week or so, we have had a ton of really great Tanzanian food at restaurants, with our host families and from the mama who cooks our lunch for us everyday before soccer camp!

Generally, the Tanzanian diet consists of many forms of starches (various forms of breads, rice, potatoes), as well as fresh fruit, beans, eggs, cooked greens or fresh salad (made of tomato, onion, bell pepper) and varying amounts of meat or fish depending on the economic class of the family. Tea (with lot's of sugar!) is almost always taken with breakfast (which is often some form of bread). Lunch and dinner is often some starch (potatoes, bread, rice, or chips) as well as a vegetable and a protein source (beans, meat, fish or egg). Desserts such as cookies and cake are uncommon here - but fresh fruit is often available and served as a dessert! Oranges, bananas, mangos, watermelon, papaya and pineapple are the most widely available fruits in Iringa town currently.

Above you can see pictures of some of the foods we have eaten so far. Below are descriptions of each one. Enjoy!

Lunch #1: Chips (fries), fried fish, katchumbari salad (onions, tomatoes, bell peppers and salt)

Breakfast #1: Hot water for tea - in the kettle, maandazi (donuts) - on the plate, and mkate (bread) - in the serving dish

Dinner #1: Parachichi (avocado), Katchumbari salad, maharage (beans), pilau (spiced rice with potatoes), ngegele ya nazi (peas cooked with coconut milk), sukuma wiki (kale) [clockwise starting at the bottom]

Dinner #2:  Ugali (corn meal porridge, kind of similar to polenta), wali (rice) with meat and a tomato sauce on top, cooked cabbage and carrot, and maharage.

Breakfast or snack: Sambusa/samosa (triangular piece of baked dough filled with potatoes, vegetables, spices and sometimes meat)

One of our favorite drinks: Fanta passion! This is fanta soda in the flavor of passion fruit - SO YUMMY!