Written by Shea Keaveney
Trying to keep your Vegan African Food varied and interesting may at times feel daunting. However, it no longer needs to be. We have found 10 delicious and mouth-watering recipes that are going to add some much-needed African flavour to your life. Africa is one of the most diverse continents in the world, and the food is deep in flavour and rich with spice. If you want to satisfy your sweet tooth with some tasty treats or if you’re looking to start your morning out right with a delicious breakfast, we’ve got it all below. Vegan African Food top 10!
~ East African Breakfast Wraps
Known to the natives as a ‘Ugandan Rolex’ due to tourists misinterpreting the pronunciation of ‘rolled eggs.’ This breakfast dish is as precious as high-end watches in the East of Africa. Traditionally, this dish is known as a veggie dish. These breakfast wraps are similar to a rolled-up omelette with a soft chapati shell. They contain a host of healthy fillings most commonly: tomato, onion and cabbage. For your convenience, this dish can be easily altered to suit your taste buds. Add mushrooms, peppers or even some vegan cheese to give your wrap something extra.
Click here for the veganised version.
~ Nutmeg Plantain Pancakes
Sticking with the breakfast theme, brings us on to a combination of Morocco and Sierra Leone. The Moroccan half of this meal comes in the form of the pancakes (Beghrir) themselves. Extremely popular in Morocco, these extra fluffy pancakes are the perfect base for your topping to be drizzled all over. Whilst it is entirely up to you on what to accompany your pancakes with, we recommend maple and nutmeg roasted plantain.
For the full recipe click here.
~ Puff-Puff
Crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, these dough balls can be eaten at pretty much any time of the day, depending on what you choose to accompany them with. Once again it is your choice. You can pair them with a sweet, fruity dip for a delicious midday snack, or alternatively turn them into a post dinner indulgence by drowning the dough balls in a chocolate or caramel sauce.
There are many variations of this recipe across Africa but click here for the Nigerian Puff Puff recipe.
~ Cornbread
Served as a side dish or a snack this dish is known as ‘Sweetcorn bread’ or ‘Mealies’ in Africa. It originates in South Africa and is best served fresh out the oven and still hot. This vegan cornbread is the perfect side to go with your dinner. Alternatively, it can be topped with some vegan butter and eaten alone at breakfast time or throughout the day.
Click here for the full recipe.
~ Jollof Rice
An iconic dish across West Africa that is extremely popular in Nigeria and Ghana. African’s often enjoy Jollof rice as a meal served on its own at parties. It can also be served with fried plantains. Like most popular African staple foods, Jollof rice will vary slightly depending on where you find it. Follow this Ghanaian-style recipe which uses Basmati rice.
~ Peanut Stew
This is one of the most popular African dishes for those following a plant-based diet. It is another West African meal that varies by region and may also be referred to as ‘maafe’ or ‘domoda’ amongst other names.
You can play around with the greens that you use in this dish – we recommend adding sweet potato and kale. Find the full recipe here.
~ Gatsby Sandwich
A ‘Gatsby’ is a mammoth submarine sandwich originating in South Africa. This sandwich is commonly cut into 4 pieces, so it can be shared between several people. Today, you’ll find most places offer a selection of meat fillings to accompany traditional fillings of French fries, lettuce and cheese - drizzled in hot sauce.
However, you’ll be hard pushed to find a meat-free alternative on the streets of Cape Town. Luckily we’ve searched the web to find you this tasty, ‘veganised’ Gatsby Sandwich.
~ Yam and ‘Egg’
Yams are a sweet potato like vegetable yet less sweet and starchier than the original sweet potato. Once you’ve mastered cooking this dish you could try integrating yam into a curry, porridge or even a burger. The ‘egg’ part of this dish can be achieved by making a tofu scramble that will leave questioning if you have actually used eggs.
Find the full recipe here.
~ Malva Pudding
Moving onto the tasty treats for that sweet tooth. We are starting with a national treasure in South Africa, the Malva Pudding. It is a sponge cake made with apricot jam and covered in a cream sauce. It is often served hot and accompanied by custard or ice-cream.
Interestingly, this dish is so delicious that Oprah Winfrey’s personal chef served the pudding for Christmas dinner to pupils of the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy.
Click here for the vegan recipe.
~ Senegalese Sombi
Finally, but by no means least we have the Senegalese Sombi. Sombi is a coconut-based rice pudding that is very simple to make. It is usually served warm but can be enjoyed chilled in the summertime. We recommend garnishing your Sombi with a sprinkling of coconut chips.
Find the simple recipe here.
Although, we have left you with a lot of food for thought it might be that some days you would rather dine out and experience these delicious Vegan African Food and flavours. Not only will dining out give you a wide variety of African food, but you can also experience the diverse African culture first-hand. Therefore, for that reason we have done the research for you, so that a selection of London based, vegan, African restaurants is only a click away