Thumpy Rose Countries that love spicy food
As you may know, African cuisine is characterized by the presence of many spices, especially spicy ones. If you visit countries like Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Senegal or others, you can see a wide variety of dishes that involve a diversity of spices. Indeed, this is due to the variety of ethnicities in these lands. Without a doubt, Benin is also one of those countries. In fact, West African spices vary according regions as is the case with Benin spices from 12 regions. So, you will be able to taste a variety of Benin Food during your visit. Do you know what is amiwo? Read on to find out! In this article, we will share with you some of the key spices that you can discover in Benin street food. Finally, we will remove some doubt around the question: is spicy food addictive? So read on to enjoy these valuable resources.
Most popular spices in Benin Food
You may know one or two of these spices. But these West African spices, specifically Benin spices are usually found in traditional drinks or in most savory dishes you will encounter in Benin.
Here are some of the popular spice:
DOTE (ginger)
Ginger or Dotè in Fon language is a tree root. It is one of the most used spices in West Africa and also in benin street food. It can be used in tomato or vegetable sauces. Indeed, it elevates the taste of soups, sauces and all dishes in general. Ginger can be used fresh or reduced to powder; ginger is a powerful ingredient used in Berbere. Moreover, it has many virtues and health experts say it would facilitate digestion. Would you add ginger to Amiwo (red paste)? Comment below.
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Related: Juicy Liberian Rice Bread Recipe – Popular West African Food
AYOO (garlic)
Like ginger, garlic or Ayoo in Fon language is a main component of Benin Food. It grows underground like ginger. As you may know, garlic has a very strong smell and taste that inhibits the strong odors of certain foods. This is why it is used frequently in cooking. Moreover, its medicinal properties are many. Thus, they help prevent and reduce flu or cold. They also improve blood pressure and cholesterol levels in the body. Ayoo adds extra flavor to amiwo (red paste). West African spices like garlic are popular in some countries and not used in others, namely Liberia.
TAKIN (chili pepper)
Regarding West African spices, is spicy food addictive? In Benin, we can say no, because the red or green pepper is one of the most popular Benin spices. A Beninese dish without chili will not be good at all. That’s why in Benin, practically everything is spiced with chili pepper. Moreover, red pepper is consumed crushed, powdered or fresh in meals. Because chili pepper is very spicy, it must be used sparingly. Are there Africans who do not add takin to amiwo?
Related: How to make Ethiopian Berbere Spice
NINNINKOU (sweet bell pepper)
There are several varieties of pepper (Ninninkou in the local language of Benin) throughout West African spices. Like other spices, it gives dishes a pleasant aroma and a special flavor. It also has very good therapeutic properties such as improving eye health, preventing anemia, etc.
CLOU DE GIROFLE(Cloves)
Cloves improve blood pressure and cures mouth pains according to health practitioners. Above all, Cloves give a special smell to the meal. It can be used not only in vegetable sauces, but also in rice and couscous. Some people use cloves in Amiwo (red paste).
AFITIN (Mustard)
Lastly, mustard spice is widely consumed in central and southern Benin. It is used in glutinous sauces such as okra sauce. Afitin is appreciated because of its smell which does not go unnoticed. Personally, I am interested in cooking okra sauce with Afitin which might be another flavor galore to experience. Be sure to subscribe to our free newsletter to get notified.
Related: Satisfying African Pepper Soup recipe
Benin Street Food
To truly experience and taste the spices of Benin during a visit or at your home, you can consider these dishes below which brings you closer to West African spices:
The amiwô dish (red paste)
Called “Djèwô” in the local Fon language, Amiwô is undoubtedly one of the most popular dishes in southern Benin. It is prepared with a variety of spices including ginger, garlic, pepper, etc. Finally, it is accompanied by tomato juice. Have you tasted amiwo before?
Benin street food : Peanut sauce (aziin nusunnu)
Aziin Nusunnu is called mafe in Senegal, tiguadégué in Mali, aziin nusunnu in Benin, peanut soup in Ghana or Nigeria, azindezzi in Togo. It is simply cooked with ground and smooth peanut paste, crushed tomatoes or paste. Stay tuned for guided instructions on how to prepare Aziin Nusunnu the authentic Benin way.
To enhance its flavor during cooking, ingredients such as chili, onion, mustard and ginger are added. Wow, I am excited already and can’t wait to cook the Benin version of peanut soup as a Liberian. Other spices such as turmeric, coriander and chili flakes are also used. Okay, game on! I love coriander to the moon and I need this version of peanut soup in my life now. Are these West African spices beginning to look familiar to you?
Another Benin Food with flavor : tomato sauce (N’sounou sin)
Called in Yoruba in Nigeria “omi ôbè”, this sauce is mostly liquid or soupy in consistency. The basic ingredient is fresh tomato puree and other spices. This sounds like a winter or rainy season must-have to warm you up. There are different types of tomato sauce variations such as spicy N’sounou sin and some with vegetables, or some with pumpkin seed flour, or with peanut paste. West Africa is so creative with all these flavor combinations. I will get fat with joy.
Is spicy food addictive?
Is spicy food addictive ? In reality, spicy food has never lost its fans and rightfully so the world will be sad without it. Although food trends are changing, spicy foods that “burn the tongue” will always be appreciated because humans are weird people that like self torture (lol jk). It is estimated that one-third of the world’s population consumes hot spices every day; you can assume that includes most of Africa and Asia because the Western world doesn’t like spicy food wahala. Evidently, West African spices like chili or habanero pepper are found in traditional foods, .
Related: Liberian Dry Rice Pepper Sauce Gravy
University of Pennsylvania psychologist Paul Rozin says that spicy food lovers like the “burning sensation.” As a result, they consume more of it. The source of spice in chili peppers is capsaicin. This substance binds to a number of receptors that signal pain from heat. The resulting spicy taste will also command the brain to release endorphin hormones that can cause a sense of comfort and happiness. With this, I don’t understand people.
Is it this feeling of comfort that gets spicy food lovers hooked? No, according to some theories, humans like the spicy taste because they crave challenges. Personally, I like small amounts of pepper spice in my food now because it adds a heightened layer of flavor to the dish. Since I transitioned to a plant-based lifestyle, I noticed my fiery spice craving reduced drastically.
A’las
As you have just discovered, Benin has amiwo. So, we’ve introduced you to the main spices of Benin and some of the usual dishes in which you can find them. Do you know of any other spices of Beninese origin that are not mentioned in our list above? Happy to read your comments. Feel free to share this article. Curious about a no-animal-meat food lifestyle? Peep instagram to see what I eat live😊.
