Characteristic products
Despite arid climatic conditions over much of its territory, agriculture remains possible in Botswana, thanks in particular to irrigation, especially in the slightly wetter north and south-east of the country. This does not prevent local markets from overflowing with a wide variety of foods. Maize and sorghum are produced locally, while rice, wheat and potatoes are mostly imported. Other legumes include the famous cowpea bean, the peanut-like ditloo or bambara bean, the brown-seeded morama bean and the letlhodi, better known to us as dolique asperge or haricot kilomètre, a type of green bean that can grow up to a meter long! As in many African countries, groundnuts or manoko are very popular. Other locally-grown vegetables are also present. These include sweet potatoes, cabbage, onions, spinach and carrots. Alternatively, some species grow wild, available seasonally. These include okra or delele, as well as dried bean leaves, also used in some recipes.
Meat is generally of very high quality. There's no shortage of livestock in this country, and despite the dry climate, the vast savannahs and grasslands allow the animals to graze easily. Beef is one of the few major food products that is not imported. It is one of the most common ingredients in local cuisine and is present on the plates of every family, even the poorest. Chicken is its great rival, often roasted and marinated, or simmered. Botswana also produces its own mutton, lamb and goat meat, which Botswanans love. Although the country is predominantly Christian, pork is rarer, not least because the aridity is unsuitable for raising pigs, and so pork is imported, mainly from South Africa. Although bush meat has been a source of protein in the region for millennia, the country's strict policy on hunting has made it less common than in the rest of Africa.
Indeed, locals consume another source of protein thanks to a much smaller animal: the mopane worm. In reality, these are the large black and white caterpillars of a moth. They are harvested from the trunks of mopane trees in southern Africa during the rainy season. After toasting and drying, they are eaten as a crunchy cookie. Tourists will enjoy them more for the adventure than for the culinary experience, as the taste of mopane worms remains fairly neutral.
The country's hot, dry climate makes it possible to dry certain foods, such as beef, which is cut into thin strips before being dried. This is also the case for cowpea bean leaves. Some corn pasta is pre-cooked and then dried for other uses. Madila is a type of yoghurt, produced from fermented milk and rich in probiotics. Botswana women traditionally give it to their babies to relieve colic.
The basics of Botswana cuisine
Among the country's most famous dishes is seswaa, also known as chotlho or leswao (understand pounded beef). This meat dish is generally prepared by men for special occasions such as weddings and funerals. To make it, the meat - beef or goat - is simmered with salt for several hours until it melts. It is then crushed and finely shredded. Its melt-in-the-mouth texture and subtle taste go well with mashed corn and boiled leafy vegetables. Another popular dish, serobe, is a stew of goat, mutton or beef intestines, simmered for a long time. Sheep or goat feet poached in a broth are sometimes added. Alternatively, try mogatla, an oxtail stew with flour-based brioche dumplings(matlebekwane) that cook directly in the sauce. As in the rest of southern Africa, braai is an event in its own right, where various cuts of beef, pork or chicken, not forgetting sausages, are barbecued. Although this type of meal is less common in Botswana than in South Africa, it is often served on safari, particularly in lodges. The meat is served with vetkoek, a type of South African fried bread that is usually topped with meat.
Botswanans are also fond of various maize, sorghum and other starchy porridges, which are a cheap and easy-to-prepare food source. Pap is a cornmeal puree that requires a little technique to cook slowly. This sturdy polenta holds together well in the body, but remains rather neutral in taste, which is why pap is usually accompanied by meat in sauce or even grilled. That's why it's often found on the braai table. The word samp refers to coarsely crushed, dried corn seeds. They are boiled for a long time and sometimes mixed with beans to prepare dikgobe aka izinkobe. This is a common dish for celebrations, both weddings and funerals.
Mabele is a sorghum flour used to make breakfast porridge. There's also bogobe jwa lerotse, also known as slap-pap. This sorghum porridge is sometimes considered Botswana's national rural dish. Bogobe is a general term for any type of cereal purée - like pap - and is characterized by its mild flavor. Here, we add the pulp of the lerotse melon, which could resemble a watermelon and whose slightly orange flesh gives a delicate flavor and a caramel color to the bogobe jwa lerotse. The taste of this melon, however, is closer to a cucumber than a cantaloupe. It is generally prepared for events such as weddings.
Morogo wa dinawa is made from dried cowpea bean leaves, which are then simmered for a long time with various condiments. It has been a major ingredient in Botswana cuisine for many centuries. More recently, wheat flour - imported mainly from South Africa - has gradually been integrated into local gastronomy, enabling the preparation of breads and pastries. In fact, thanks to tourism, which has become a major activity in recent years, the country is enjoying more and more international cuisine, particularly Western cuisine. In lodges or large hotels in town, menus are generally worthy of a French brasserie. Burgers, various cuts of beef and a wide variety of vegetables are readily available. Western cuisine is becoming increasingly sophisticated, and the country can now boast a solid gastronomic foundation.
Fruit, desserts and drinks
Botswanans aren't necessarily big on desserts. However, there are several types of porridge made from sorghum or maize fermented with milk and sugar, known as ting. Or diphaphatha, small puck-shaped buns similar to English muffins, spread with butter and jam. Magwinya, on the other hand, are simply sugar doughnuts.
Although botanists are divided on the possible origins of the watermelon in the arid zones of the Sahara or southern Africa, one thing is certain: this fruit is indeed native to Africa. The Kalahari desert is home to several species that have always been an important source of water for both humans and desert animals. Despite their watermelon-like appearance, their white-to-orange pulp is much firmer and, above all, more bitter than our cultivated version. These melons are usually called tsamma or lerotse, but this variety is known by the French name gigérine. Its astringent taste makes it rather unpalatable raw, but it is often prepared in pickles or jam. Traditionally, melon pulp was even mixed with fermented milk.
In addition to the mangoes, citrus fruits and papayas grown and consumed in the country, there is also the marula. The latter is used to makeamarula, a delicious creamy liqueur originally from South Africa, but widely distributed in neighboring countries such as Botswana. Legend has it that the idea of producing this alcohol came from the observation of animals who had become drunk after eating too much marula fruit. In fact, the very ripe, sugar-rich fruit began to ferment in the heat. Its sweet, caramel-like taste and low alcohol content - just 17 degrees - make it a delight to drink as an aperitif.
The country's main alcoholic beverage, however, is beer, of which many varieties have been produced since time immemorial. Bojalwa ja Setswana is brewed from fermented sorghum seeds. Some beers are also brewed from millet or lebelebele. But it can also be brewed with maize. This is the case with chibuku, which is also brewed in neighbouring countries such as Malawi, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Finally, khadi is made from the berries of Grewia flava, a local tree whose slightly sour, fermented fruits produce this inexpensive spirit, much appreciated by the working classes.
