I think that it would be fair to say that I am a food lover. I enjoy cooking and eating good food! I'm not particularly fussy either, but from what I had heard about Ugandan food before coming here I was quite nervous! Food here has a reputation for being very bland and repetitive. It probably is a fair assessment, but I'm actually not finding it so bad.
My breakfast here is without exception toast, a banana and a cup of fairly average instant coffee. Sometimes I'll have an egg too but the yolks are so pale that I can't help but think of the poor undernourished hens you see everywhere when I eat one. A little off putting.
Lunch at school always includes beans and posho. The teachers receive some other 'dish'. Most often it is boiled cabbage, sometimes matoke (which is stemmed or boiled savoury tasting bananas), sweet potato (which is just like kumara) or 'Irish' potatoes (which are simply referred to as Irish by Ugandans). It would be fair to say that carbs rule supreme here! I also have similar food for dinner, although there is a lot more variety.
I find the servings here enormous. They have learnt at school to serve me smaller portions and even then I always end up giving some of my lunch to the kids.
People here only seem to eat cooked vegetables, and while the fruit is fantastic there doesn't seem to be a lot of evidence of people eating much fresh fruit. I am loving the passion fruit and pineapple even if the locals don't.
Interestingly people don't eat very much meat here. In fact in a month I've eaten meat less than 10 times. Quite different to NZ in that regard. Meat eaten is mainly goat, beef or chicken. You can also get fish which is caught in Lake Victoria. Meat is sold in little road side stalls (like everything here) and every time I do eat meat I can't help but think of the slabs of meat sitting in the sun with flies buzzing around. Dairy products are very uncommon, particularly cheese. Snack foods includes fried chicken and chapattis.
Ovens are almost nonexistent here. Pretty much everything here is either boiled or deep fried over charcoal! Most people don't have fridges, so food is only prepared as needed.
While I am surviving on the food front I'd be lying if I didn't say that I crave western food from time to time. Flat whites, nice salads, cheese, a decent steak, and [insert any other delicious food].
On a final food related note, for those who came to my 'Come dine with me dinner' in London I can personally vouch for the money you gave to the hot lunch program going to a good cause. All the money went directly to the school I am at and £225 goes a long way here. Ensuring that all the kids get lunch is really worthwhile. Apparently before they started the program, parents were asked to give extra money to ensure the children all received food at lunch, but many didn't pay it. While school fees would be paid and uniforms purchased, providing lunch for their children just isn't a priority for parents (who are no doubt been financially stretched in so many directions). The program is one of the best ways of helping people here without setting foot on the continent. If anyone does want to contribute to the program please let me know so I can ensure the money goes to the right person before I leave.
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| The passionfruit are AMAZING. |
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| Posho and beans |
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| Mzungu food goodness |
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