Sunset, Moonlight, Cassava, and Community with Sophie Musoki

Welcoming Sophie to the podcast today. She’s speaking with us from Uganda, where she writes the blog A Kitchen in Uganda and hosts a podcast titled Our Food Stories.

Sophie takes us with her to the communal gatherings she enjoyed by sunset and moonlight at the communal pestle, where women took turns pounding cassava and preparing dinner, while large extended families ate together in the moonlight. We'll learn from her all about the Cassava plant, Kabalagala bananas, and the pancakes her mother made and sold to passersby for just a cent or two.

After hearing these stories, it's easy to understand the urgency she feels to preserve her food memories - and to learn about the food traditions of fellow Ugandans - through her blog and podcast. Conversations with her parents have convinced Sophie that Ugandan's food heritage is under threat by the forces of technology, modernization, globalization, religion, and vestiges of colonization.

Furthermore, Uganda is a country of tribes. The borders are arbitrary (well, not quite arbitrary - she discusses how they were formed) and separate tribes from fellow tribe members while tossing together people groups with little culture or language in common. So, Sophie’s second goal in starting her podcast was to learn more about the food cultures of different tribes within her own country.

Sophie’s voice is gentle and melodic and in this interview, she taught me many things in the same way - with gentleness and thoughtfulness. I’m so delighted to introduce her to you today.

Highlights

Seasons in Uganda - historically and currently
All about Kabalagala (Apple bananas)
Cassava flour - how to make it from planting the Cassava through pounding
Cassava flour - NOT native to Uganda
50 tribes in Uganda - learn about Sophie’s
The evening tradition in Sophie’s village
Making the recipe that’s a huge ball
Making Kabalagala pancakes and selling them for 1 or 2 cents - beautiful memories
Buying Kabalagala from a street vendor herself many years later
Why Ugandans identify more with their tribes than their country - a legacy of Colonization
“I may meet another Ugandan and not even be able to communicate with them”
Why she started her podcast to connect with other Ugandans and their cooking
“I can tell you the capital of Tennessee but I can’t tell you about my own region.”
How technology, religion, and globalization threaten the memory/knowledge of her food culture

Listen to Sophie Now

Follow The Storied Recipe in Your Favorite Player

Sophie's Storied Recipe: Ugandan Vegan Banana & Cassava Flour Pancakes

Kabalagala: Vegan Banana & Cassava Flour Pancakes from Uganda

How To Contact Sophie Musoki

Instagram: @akitcheninuganda

Pinterest: @akitcheninug

Facebook: A Kitchen in Uganda

Website: akitcheninuganda.com

Youtube: A Kitchen in Uganda

How to make Kabalaga pancakes: Video on Sophie's blog, A Kitchen in Uganda

Here is an episode of Sophie’s podcast featuring Cassava preservation: EKilobeko

How to make Ugandan Posho

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