Singita Grumeti Reserves have introduced an exciting new culinary experience that integrates international cuisine with authentic traditional foods of East Africa. Chief among the epicurean influences here is Swahili cuisine, featured on the new African Tasting Menu that is served at the 1920s-styled Singita Sabora Tented Camp in Tanzania.
Guests of Singita Grumeti Reserves can sample local cuisine reflecting a diverse range of flavors. These include “mtori,” a traditional soup from the Kilimanjaro region made from onions, green bananas and red meat. A choice of mezze style platters are also served in traditional Swahili fashion. These feature dishes such as “dagaa mchuzi,” a delicious serving of dried fish cooked in peanut tomato sauce; “mchicha,” a locally harvested wild spinach blanched or sautéed with sunflower oil, tomato and onion; and “kitandu cha nyama,” a meat stew cooked with bitter local greens, hosting a unique bittersweet flavor with citric undertones.
Also featuring on the new menu are staple foods that are ubiquitous to Africa. “Ugali” is best described as white polenta made from finely ground dried corn caked into a stiff porridge, and is a popular choice coupled with “pilau” and “wali” (rice cooked in coconut milk served with meat and stew). Also featured for the seafood enthusiast is Tilapia, and the African red devil “piri piri” (Swahili for pepper). “Nyama choma” is a form of barbecued meat, traditionally the entree of choice in East Africa. This menu is complemented by local beverages including “dawa” (a lime, honey and vodka cocktail) and a selection of Tanzanian beers.
Traditional Swahili spices and local honey are also used extensively in the cuisine at all Singita’s four lodges in the Grumeti Reserves. Many dishes use organic home grown vegetables sourced from local villages that are part of various community support projects run by the Singita Grumeti Fund. Best of all, guests can dine while watching the local wildlife wander through the camp. The photo below was snapped during brunch at Sabora.
Visit www.singita.com for more information.