A Mali Cuisine Review

I've never read an article on food before, but here's my attempt to be food critic. Village cuisine in Mali revolves around a few major themes: thing from the field, things from the garden, and things from around town.

Things from the field include:
rice, millet, peanuts, beans, corn, mangos, oranges, watermelons, onions, potatoes.

Things from the garden include:
okra, tomatoes, green bell peppers, hot peppers, cucumbers, papaya, sweet potato, cassava, lettuce, melon, and garlic.

Things from around town include:
chicken, goat, sheep, cow, fish, eggs, pasta, seasonings, sugar, powdered milk

The food scene in Mali has both a good and bad side - two seemingly opposing forces fighting for purposes good or evil. The raw foods listed above are typically combined to make different dishes. Mali is a mono "dish" culture, so unlike the US where you eat several different things during a meal, in Mali the meal is one thing.

Forces Fighting for Good

Rice and Sauce
Universally likes by all. Typically consists of copious amounts of steaming hot rice, which is smothered in one of several sauces. The most common sauces use peanuts or onions as a base ingredient, but sometimes something related to soy sauce will make an appearance. All are made from scratch.

Pasta
...Can be found in two manifestations: spaghetti or macaroni. The proper nomenclature for both in Mali is "macaroni". No tomato sauce required. All that is needed for an excellent dining experience is a cube or two of the universal Malian seasoning "Maggi". Maggi is essentially a bullion cube style powder.

Hard Boiled Eggs
Usually seasoned with Maggi and added to a plate of "macaroni". A special treat in village.

Cucumber, Bread, & Dressing
This dish appears rarely in the average cook's weekly repertoire, but is a welcome change from routine. Preparation includes first peeling several cucumbers, then slicing them in half, and then slicing the halves into quarter inch thick semi-circles. These are put into a bowl and then liberally covered in a vinaigrette dressing consisting of vinegar, peanut oil, and possibly some salt. To consume, take a small piece of break and pinch it around several pieces of cucumber and enjoy.

Beans
Similar to pinto beans, but not made into a paste as done in the Mexican kitchen. Cooked several hours until soft, a little peanut oil is then added.

Sweet Potato Fries
Exactly when they sound like, only the sweet potatoes here are white, not orangey.

Corn on the Cob
It's not sweet corn and it doesn't come with salt or butter... but it's delicious. After being husked, the cobs are put directly onto hot coals. Then the kernels start browning it's time to eat. Corn on the cob is more of a snack food and not very common where I'm at.

Peanuts
Fresh. Roasted. Shelled. Salted. Combinations of these. There are several ways to enjoy Mali's favorite legume. Eaten as a stand alone snack, with tea, or in peanut sauces.

Millet Couscous
Tastes almost exactly like couscous made from wheat. Usually flavored with peanut oil, peanut sauce, or onion sauce.

Fried Dough
Known as "gato", this is a simple dough made of flour and water which is then fried in a pot of peanut or shea oil. Sprinkle some sugar on top and you're all set. Who needs Krispy Kreme?

Mini Crumpets
It's called ngomi ("n-go-mee"). Essentially this is a mini pancake that behaves like an untoasted crumpet. They're cooked in oil, but not fried. A great breakfast food.

Forces Fighting for Evil

Sardines, Bread, & Dressing
Not a sandwich. Sardines and vinaigrette dressing are in a bowl and then scooped up with bits of bread in the same manner as the cucumber dish mentioned earlier.

Moni ("mo-nee")
This is a type of porridge typically eaten for breakfast. It consists of millet flour made into balls the size of small peas which are suspended in a solution of millet flour, water, and sugar. Much of the time milk is included, but the milk is sour. Consuming this concoction is like drinking something chunky with the viscosity of lite syrup... and it tastes terrible thanks to the sour milk.

Siri ("see-ree")
It's rice porridge made out of rice, sugar, and milk. It would be great if it wasn't for the fact that once again, the milk is sour.

Bread and Mayonnaise
A breakfast food. I won't even begin to describe my feelings regarding this culinary abomination.

To (as in "dough")
Typically made from millet (but also can be from corn or rice). It has the consistency of Play-Doh or cold Malt-O-Meal (when hot). Eaters typically grab a sticky handful and then dip it into a bowl of either okra or fish sauce. Each sauce is equally undesirable, not to mention that the To itself is like eating a tasteless, sticky something. The okra sauce is lovingly referred to by English speakers here as "snot sauce", given its color and consistency. The only thing worse than freshly prepared To is day-old To that is reserved after it's had some time solidify further and contemplate its existence overnight before meeting a final destination.

Meat
Meat is actually on neutral ground as it can be good or bad depending on how it's prepared, what part of the animal it came from, and how old the animal was when slaughtered. Goat is the most common meat in village, followed by sheep, cow, and finally chicken. The reason for this being that since there is no refrigeration, any animal slaughtered has to be consumed that day or the meat spoils. Goat works perfectly because there's enough meat for a family and a little left over to sell. Sheep and cows are bigger animals, so they are typically reserved for large feasts. Chickens just aren't very common in village and thus are eaten with little frequency. I should also point out that eating meat in general is not very common and considered a special treat.