This way of eating is based on the healthy culinary traditions of the African Diaspora: Africa, the Caribbean, parts of South America, and the American South. Unifying characteristics include lots of vegetables (especially leafy greens), fresh fruits, roots and tubers, nuts and peanuts, beans, and staple whole grain foods.
“African diaspora” is the term commonly used to describe the mass dispersion of peoples from Africa during the Transatlantic Slave Trades. These African ancestors landed in regions that featured different foods and cuisines, as well as other cultural influences. They combined these local influences with their own foods and knowledge to create the unique dishes now found in African heritage cooking.
Curries, peppers, coconut, fresh herbs, garlic, onions, lemon, and spices are all traditional, low-sodium ways to add incredible flavor to your meals.
If you eat meat, have smaller amounts. Use it as a garnish instead of a main course, or choose a smaller portion size for your main course.
Steamed, sautéed, roasted, grilled, or raw–enjoy veggies like okra, cabbage, green beans, or eggplant in larger portions than the other parts of your meal.
Full of fiber and protein, dishes with rice and beans are a classic. Combine heritage whole grains like millet, sorghum, or teff with black-eyed peas, lentils, or chickpeas.
One-pot cooking lets flavors sing together! Mash cooked potatoes or yams with vegetables and spices, or let okra, corn, and tomatoes collide in a “mixup.”
Look to African heritage whole foods, in their natural state, to crowd out processed and packaged “convenience foods” whenever you can.
Food is meant to be shared; so is good health. Make your dinner table a “healing table” where people come to share fresh foods and reinforce happy, healthy lives.
We all have beloved foods that may fall outside nutritional guidelines. Save these foods for special occasions, but when you do have them, enjoy them whole-heartedly!
Fresh or frozen fruits like melons, peaches, berries, and mangos—plain or sprinkled with chopped nuts or coconut—add a sweet, healthy taste to the end of a meal.
A splash of flavor can make water your go-to drink. As an alternative to soda, add crushed fruits or small amounts of 100% fruit juice to water or sparkling water.
Eat moderate portions, daily to weekly
Eat less often
Eat moderate portions, daily to weekly
Eat often, at least twice a week
Base every meal on these foods
© 2011 Oldways. All rights reserved. Illustration by George Middleton www.oldwayspt.org
Check out our glossary to get familiar with common foods in the African Heritage Diet
From Senegal to Brazil to Savannah, GA, a wide range of foods are found in the African heritage tradition. Check out this resource to learn more about the foods and flavors that are common in the African Heritage Diet, and how frequently to eat them.
To learn more about African Diaspora and how this impacted the creation of the African Heritage diet, please visit our Diet Background page.
To put the African Heritage Diet Pyramid on a plate, we have enlisted the help of African heritage culinary scholar Jessica B. Harris to compile a group of 12 Plates of Expression. These dishes are both culinary expressions of the pyramid and cultural expressions of each of the four distinct regions of African heritage.
Although nutrition research has historically been Eurocentric, emerging studies highlight the health benefits of traditional African Heritage Diets and the benefits of culturally tailored nutrition programming.
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