The Jiranileo team loves to explore Africa through food.
Whenever we travel, we figure out the foodie scene in three ways: (1) Doing a lot of eating (like this photo of us eating kasongole on the side of the road in Livingstone, Zambia); (2) Talking to everyone we can about what they eat at home; and (3) Wandering around local markets to see what makes the place unique in their food culture.
What we know for sure: All African markets are not the same. Every country has their own culinary style. Within countries there are regional differences in foods. And everything from the time of day to month of the year influences what food is for sale.
Scroll down to learn our 5 top tips for visiting an African market.
(Also, kasongole was a definite yum.)
Taking a tour of an African market is an adrenaline rush.
Markets are the pulse of the city. Sometimes this pulse can be overwhelming. Large African markets are often crowded, noisy, and visually overwhelming.
However, markets are also vibrant, culturally diverse, and full of local knowledge about traditional foods and that’s what makes it so exciting for us.
(Markets are also full of hidden surprises. Like, did you know in Dar es Salaam there are people in the market whose entire day is spent trading out dirty/worn money for fresh notes?)
We’re sharing our tips so that you can make the most of your market exploration.
First rule of thumb – don’t carry what you don’t need!
Watch this video with our tips of what to bring (and what not to bring) when walking around an African market.
If you are going alone, it’s helpful to bring a small card with local language questions on it (greetings, “what is this food called”, “how do I exit the market”). Be ready to walk with confidence, and with a friendly smile.
If you decide to bring a camera or your phone, don’t forget to ask permission before you take a photo of anyone in the market, including asking permission from parents before taking any photos of children.
Tip 1: Not all markets are the same every day.
Pick the market you want to visit, and make sure to ask the best day and time to visit. Some markets only happen on specific days of the week.
Central markets, like Lusaka’s Soweto Market, will have everything under the sun (garden tools, fabric, imported foods, kitchenware, etc.), and tend to be crowded.
The smaller markets tend to have what people need on a daily basis (flour, salt, fresh vegetables, etc.) and are less chaotic.
Timing is important.
Some places have a few days of the week for markets, while other places are busy every day.
Fish markets are best first thing in the morning after large fishing trawlers come in from the night. At Darajani Market in Stone Town (Zanzibar), you might time your visit to catch the fish auction.
(Do you see the spotted ray in that photo? Not pictured: Two sharks on the floor next to me.)
You may also prefer to know the times that are less crowded. A Sunday visit to Soweto market in Lusaka was not only less crowded, but I learned that it also has more traditional foods on sale compared to Saturdays.
(Of course I asked why. Because the market women who have catering businesses are busy with events on Saturdays such as bridal showers where many traditional foods are served.)
Tip 2: Lean into your inner tourist and take a guided tour
I love exploring on my own, but when it comes to markets, my inner foodie wants all the information I can find. Guides can navigate you to the sections of the market of most interest to you.
(In Soko Kuu, the large market in Kariokoo, Dar es Salaam, it took a lot of time wandering through garden tools to figure out where to find the areas for spices.)
A guide can translate the food names into various languages.
In Zambia, the vendors can tell you all the local language words for the name of a leafy green vegetable, but might not be able to tell you in English that it is the “leaf of the cowpea”. (Did you know that in Tanzania there are at least 3 different Swahili words for rice?)
Ideally, find a guide who also likes to cook and who can explain how local foods are cooked and processed.
Markets change with the seasons. An in-season fresh vegetable today could be sold dried and packaged in a few month’s time. The rains may start and fresh mushrooms appear for sale.
(And a guide can answer questions like, “What happens to all the fresh fish that isn’t sold today?”)
Tip 3: Watch where you step!
Visiting a market takes concentration. You are focusing on finding your way through the crowd, while dodging men carrying 50kg sacks of potatoes on their backs down narrow corridors, and trying to remember where you are in relation to where you entered.
With all this activity, don’t forget to watch the ground.
Vendors often rinse down fresh fish or vegetables to keep away the flies, so the ground is often wet or muddy.
Markets often have drainage ditches, and you really don’t want to step in that accidentally.
Vendors put sacks on the ground to display their vegetables and it would be a major faux pas to step on any of their sacks or produce.
Tip 4: Come as a customer, not as a spy.
When I bought small items from vendors (such as a cup of dried beans for US .25 cents), this act changed me from an “inquisitive outsider” to a customer.
Vendors were happier to answer my questions and demonstrated the cultural practice of “mbasela” (adding a little extra on top.) I always ask where the food comes from. Some food travels very far, even across international borders, to reach big city markets.
(For example, each of the dried fish in the photo comes from a different lake!)
Being a customer also gave me the chance to ask vendors for the recipes on how to prepare the food. As you ask questions, remember to respect the vendor while she is working – don’t distract her from her usual customers.
(If you don’t want or need those foods, it is fine to give as gifts to a hotel guard, taxi driver, or maid to take home.)
Tip 5: Keep an eye out for foods not found on the local restaurant menus!
Traditional African foods may be stigmatized as “too local” to include on restaurant menus.
If you see many bunches of green bananas in the market, think back to how often you have seen traditional banana recipes on restaurant menus. (Hint: There are many more banana recipes than fried plantains!)
Are there taboo foods in your home country (such as mice, insects, crabs, snails) that you find in the market?
Insects are essentially a free source of protein, which is a huge boost to local nutrition. Zambian markets have caterpillars (mopane worms), known locally as “vinkulaba.” Ugandan markets have grasshoppers (“nsenene”), either fresh and green or fried and yellow. (The ones with chili are my favorite.)
Some of the other food items commonly found in African markets: Roots and powders and flours and edible minerals. There are so many traditional foods and ingredients to explore that are prepared locally in homes which we would never find in a restaurant.
(And then there’s the section of the market with traditional medicines, which count as food since they are edible, right? This part of the market is where your guide will blush, since many of the powders boost libido. Content for another story on this page, perhaps?)
Are you hungry now? Eat a home-cooked meal with Jiranileo to taste the traditional foods for yourself!
With luck, observation, and inquiry, you will discover and learn about new foods in the market. Now it’s time to taste them!
Book a meal in your neighborhood with Jiranileo to taste the best home-cooked foods. Find out more about Jiranileo in different African countries and locations by going to our Invitations web page. Book a meal directly on our Book Now page.
