Africa is a continent rich in natural resources and food is no exception. The continent is blessed with a wide variety of food items. Food preparation and cooking plays an important role in the African tradition. It is an expression of the culture.

Many Africans believe that “the way to people’s heart is through their stomach.” A good cook wins a lot of “hearts”.

“My Cooking” is comprised of cuisine’s originating from Nigeria in West-Africa. These cuisine’s are common all over West-Africa though prepared differently and are sometimes called different names due to language and other factors.

I feel that there is a need for a cookbook with simple but authentic recipes, which introduces both Africans and non-Africans to the variety of African cuisine. To Africans, particularly Nigerians, this book may serve as a reminder of forgotten dishes and to others it will be a pleasant adventure.

Africans take a lot of pride in food preparation and cooking – to them it is as imperative as knowing how to perform some of the ceremonial rites.

Traditional dishes vary from tribe to tribe. Many African traditional dishes are characterized by the use of various seasonings and hot pepper. There is an idiomatic expression among West-Africans that “pepper is the staff of life and the man that eats no pepper is weak”.

This is one of the reasons why most Africans favor hotly spiced food. There is also the belief by some Africans that pepper serves as a cleansing system to the body, improves the taste and flavor of food and serves as a natural food preservative.