West African cuisine encompasses a diverse range of foods that are split between its 16 countries. In West Africa, many families grow and raise their own food, and within each there is a division of labor. Indigenous foods consist of a number of plant species and animals, and african eggplant important to those whose lifestyle depends on farming and hunting.
Centuries later, the Portuguese, French and British further influenced regional cuisines, but only to a limited extent. Around the time of the colonial period, particularly during the Scramble for Africa, European settlers defined colonial borders without regard to pre-existing borders, territories or cultural differences. This bisected tribes and created colonies with varying culinary styles. Although the European colonists brought many new ingredients to the African continent, they had relatively little impact on the way people cook in West Africa. Its strong culinary tradition lives on despite the influence of colonization and food migration that occurred long ago. Though there are obvious differences among the local cuisines in West Africa, there are also many commonalities, mainly in the ingredients used.
Many dishes are enriched with a base of tomatoes, onions and chili peppers. The most prevalent cooking oil is palm nut oil, traditionally associated with the coastal regions and contributes a distinctive colour, flavour and texture to food, while shea butter is more commonly used in the Sahel. There are certain ingredients that go with certain countries as well. In Ghana, the most commonly used ingredients are hot pepper, ginger, and maize.
Spices play a relatively less prominent role in West African cooking compared to say, North African cuisine. Cooks use spices and herbs like ginger, coriander, and thyme sparingly but knowingly. Chilli peppers however are loved in West Africa, in fresh, dried and powdered form, particularly in the more hot and humid lands of the region. Introduced to Africa sometime after Christopher Columbus sailed to America by European sailors, it is said that the sweating induced by the spicy heat of chilli helps to cool the skin. West Africa, are also widely used. Sumbala or soumbala is a flavouring used widely across West Africa, used in a manner not unlike a bouillon cube. The fabrication process involves boiling, cleaning and then packing away to ferment—the fermentation process giving it a pungent smell and at the same time a rich, deep umami or savory flavour is developed.
Salt can be added to the finished product to facilitate storage life. It is a traditional cooking ingredient used across West Africa, although the less traditional bouillon cube, specifically the Maggi brand rivals it in popularity. Vegetables are a part of any West African meal. Starchy tubers and root vegetables are used as staple food, to be served with their meat and vegetable dishes, often as a foil to the hotness of the peppers. Other starch staples eaten throughout West Africa besides root vegetables and tubers include fonio, rice, millet, sorghum, and maize. Although West Africans ate far more vegetables and much less meat in the past, today their diet is heavier in meats, salt, and fats.