The Council of Ethnic Organizations allowed students to explore African culture by learning how to make a traditional snack, plantain chips,  Tuesday afternoon in the UC Ballroom. | Diana Nguyen/The Daily Cougar

The Council of Ethnic Organizations hosted an African cuisine cooking class Tuesday in the University Center Ballroom to give students a taste of different cultures.

Participating students sliced up bananas that CEO members then sautéed and fried. Spices made from ginger, lime juice and cayenne pepper were available to add on.

Liberal arts freshman Jacob Roman said it brought him new ideas of mixing spices with certain foods.

“I heard about this event seeing a poster on my way going to class coming out of Cougar Village,” Roman said. “It’s kind of neat. I never thought of seasoning a plantain with cayenne pepper.”

Political science senior Celeste Herron liked the experience of interacting with her peers.

“The most interesting part of it was meeting new people from various majors,” Herron said. “I’m normally surrounded by poli-science people, so it was interesting to learn about the different majors on campus. I came in very hungry, and I like spicy food, so this was perfect for it.”

The plantain-inspired dish started when CEO assistant director Jessica Luong, an accounting and management information systems senior, searched the Internet for “quick-to-make African foods.”

Most of the search results were desserts that required refrigeration overnight or meals that would take a long time. There were starches and meat dishes that Luong felt were too time-consuming. She hoped for something simpler.

The idea of using plantains was inspired by Luong’s trip to Belize. She boarded a boat tour to a miniature remote island, where she had the lucky chance to enjoy a meal cooked by the island’s owner.

Biology freshman Eloho Egbi, who was born in Nigeria, learned about the cooking class through a flyer.

“It’s just like the one we had at home. The ones at home are a bit more salty. We sprinkle it with salt before we fry it. I personally like the home version better. We don’t use spices like cayenne pepper. We eat plantains more as a side,” Egbi said.

“We actually call it dodo. There’s a drier kind that we often eat, which are basically plantain chips. I might join CEO to learn about new cultures and hopefully try out more diverse dishes. I like having events that remind me of home.”

Kinesiology freshman Jimmy Le liked the notion that dishes around the world shared common ingredients.

“There’s a Vietnamese dessert dish of tapioca pudding which also uses bananas,” Le said. “It’s fun to see how different cultures have almost similar dishes.”

Hotel and restaurant management sophomore Phina Uzowulu, who was familiar with the dish, shared the differences between the Americanized version and her version at home.

“At home, we have a dip instead of seasoning. There’s a certain herb grown in Africa that we use, then we grind that up, grind up ham, and we season it and put oil together to make the dip.”

Uzowulu, who helped coordinate the event, said she feels food helps connect cultures.

“Food is the universal language,” Uzowulu said. “When you like a taste, you like a taste. Whether it’s from Korea or Africa, people are still going to enjoy that taste. I hope in the future we get more people to come to the cooking events.”

arts@thedailycougar.com

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“Traditional African recipe exposes culture” was originally posted on The Daily Cougar