They too worked in gold, lapis, wood and clay. They too made jewelry, musical instruments, small statues, intricate chairs, weapons, and mosaics. They continued the art of pottery. To the arts and crafts of the Sumerians, they add massive sculpture, which they created to represent and honor their gods.

One of the Sumerians greatest advances was in the area of hydraulic engineering. Early in their history they created a system of ditches to control flooding, and were also the inventors of irrigation, harnessing the power of the Tigris and Euphrates for farming.

Initially, pictograms were used, followed by cuneiform and then ideograms. Sumerians believed in anthropomorphic polytheism, or of many gods in human form that were specific to each city-state. Sumerians invented or perfected many forms of technology, including the wheel, mathematics, and cuneiform script.

The ancient Mesopotamian diet was based on barley, a type of grain. Other things an ancient Mesopotamian could be found eating or drinking included: Meat from fish, cattle, horses, goats, sheep, and poultry. Wine, if you were rich enough.

In Leviticus 11:27, God forbids Moses and his followers to eat swine “because it parts the hoof but does not chew the cud.” Furthermore, the prohibition goes, “Of their flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall not touch; they are unclean to you.” That message is later reinforced in Deuteronomy.

Cattle, sheep, pigs and goats were regarded as a form of currency and a store of wealth, and are not generally consumed as food. In some areas, traditional East Africans consume the milk and blood of cattle, but rarely the meat.

Another dish thought to have been brought to South Africa by Asian settlers, bobotie is now the national dish of the country and cooked in many homes and restaurants. Minced meat is simmered with spices, usually curry powder, herbs and dried fruit, then topped with a mixture of egg and milk and baked until set.

Fufu is an excellent accompaniment to any soup or stew, especially those of West African descent, such as light soup (nkrakra), groundnut soup (nkate nkwan), palm nut soup (abenkwan), green vegetable soup (abun abun), egusi soup and more.

Fufu is a traditional food of central and western Africa consisting of a starchy preparation compacted by hand into small balls. Fufu balls are usually swallowed without chewing to allow a sensation of stomach fullness throughout the day.

The traditional method of eating fufu is to pinch some of the fufu off in one’s right hand fingers and form it into an easily ingested round ball. The ball is then dipped in the soup before being eaten. In Côte d’Ivoire, the word “foutou” is also used.

About Egusi Soup and Fufu (Pounded Yam) The soup is thickened with ground melon, gourd, or squash seeds. Pounded Yam is very smooth and tasty. It is often eaten with vegetable soup. Egusi soup and pounded yam is traditionally eaten with hands.

Because of its somewhat bland, chewing fufu might taste, well, bland. Swallowing it is preferred because its texture is smooth and is coated with soup to help it go down easily.

Fufu, ugali, posho, mealie-meal, nsima; the name changes with region and language, but is usually translated as ‘porridge’. Which isn’t very accurate – proper ugali or fufu is more stodge than soup, something with a texture close to window putty. It’s very hard to describe without sounding rude.

west Africa