Thou shall eat, but what are you eating?
It’s the first month of the year and everyone is trying to make resolutions and for some reason, health and wellness always pop into the picture. If you live in Uganda or any other African country, you have the privilege of accessing a huge diversity of nutrient-dense foods from the markets and even roadside vendors to aid you in realizing these health goals. I once heard someone say that the blueprint of healthy eating in the African way is making sure that your grandmother can recognize all the food on your plate if it was presented to her. This points us back to embracing the foods that have run for generations bringing more than just filling our stomachs but flavour, identity, connection, and even celebration among others.
One wonders; Why have most people especially the young and middle-aged derailed from the enjoyment of these local foods? Why are they opting for convenient and fast foods endangering the rich heritage we have proudly carried over time? The first reason they attribute this to is a lack of time to prepare these meals. It is undeniable that these meals take quite an amount of time to prepare and even clean up after but that should be no excuse. There is never enough time for anything, but setting priorities goes a long way in making it available. It would surprise you that an individual can spend 2 hours or more scrolling social media feeds, watching a movie, sports, or a TV show in their home but claim not to have 10 minutes to prepare a simple meal like porridge. The issue of cost in terms of money occasionally comes up but this can be addressed through simple planning. There are many open markets where a person can buy these foods at a very low cost.
The beginnings of escaping the convenient foods system to ground yourself back to the real food can be challenging but in the long run, it will be rewarding. Here are some tips to get you started.
- Shuffle up your priorities in terms of time allocation. Some things like mindless scrolling of social media take up our time yet they are not that necessary. Clip out some minutes and allocate them to making your food in the kitchen. It will pay off with time.
- On those busy work weekdays, order your lunch from a local food restaurant in your office neighborhood or the food delivery apps. There is a wide variety of restaurants available and the price is usually more friendly. Pop culture and other external influences have made you think that eating fast food for lunch is ideal or stylish but you do not have to believe that lie.
- Curate quick recipes for meals like breakfast. Making an omelet, porridge, or cabbage stir-fry takes under 10 minutes. Accompany it with a natural food like a banana or piece of cassava.
- Shift your snacks from the supermarket's products to something your grandmother can recognize. When one talks about snacks, what comes to our minds is usually biscuits, cookies, crisps sodas, etc. There are healthy natural alternatives like fruits such as bananas, oranges, mangoes, nuts (nuts, cashews, almonds), simsim, pumpkin seeds, and many others.
- Set aside time on a weekend to cook your meals at home. Your work schedule may be hectic from Monday to Friday leaving barely any time to cook but you can do something different on the weekend by preparing a meal using a recipe online or with friends that grounds you back to the nutrition-dense African food. This YouTube channel has lots of easy-to-make recipes you can try.
You have the power in your hands. This year, make it a priority to prepare and eat more natural food. Not only will it improve your physical health, but it will also ground you mentally as you put thought into what goes through your kitchen and eventually your plate and body. Remember to always stay true to your identity.
