A Recipe for South Sudanese Asida
Asida is a usual accompaniment to the various stews and other dishes in the rural villages of South Sudan. Asida is a cornmeal porridge created by boiling water and adding ground sorghum flour. Like most other South Sudanese bread, asida, the polenta-like dish, is eaten with your hands and dipped into the stews. When the asida is firm, pieces are ripped off, and you use your hand to make indents, creating a utensil. Asida is eaten with every meal in South Sudanese villages, and the primary ingredients of asida are sorghum and water.
The video above shows how posho or asida is traditionally made in South Sudan. When the water is at a boil, they slowly add sorghum flour and stir, covering the lid before adding more flour. Once it becomes a smooth solid block or has a somewhat soggy and firm texture it is ready to eat. Asida is commonly served with a beef stew made from peanut butter, and spinach. Asida is eaten more commonly than Kisra since Asida is much easier and less time-consuming to prepare.
Women in South Sudanese culture are expected to collect water, firewood and cook meals — It is shameful for a man to be in the kitchen, a stark difference from western culture. They usually start preparing for the first meal at 8 a.m. and finish by 3 p.m. women start by collecting water. If they’re lucky, the closest water source will be a 10–30 minute walk away. After returning with water they carry on their heads, they then collect firewood, which is often difficult to dry during the rainy season. After this women collect spinach from their farms or if they’re in a town, from the market. A fire is started with the firewood and the first meal, and sometimes the only meal of the day is prepared. This 7–8 hour process makes food for the typical 8–10 people family, but some families can be as large as 15–16. The women are tired and aching as they prepare food, after the long day of gathering everything they need.
Most food is grown during the wet season, which lasts from May to Sept. The rainy season, which lasts from Oct to Apr, is when food becomes scarce. Most farmers run out of food by Jan or Dec unless they have a goat or cow to sell. Livestock is very important in South Sudan and they are the main source of income.
The VHSS solar-powered cooking initiative would allow villagers in South Sudan to save money and time on purchasing or collecting firewood. Food is what South Sudanese villagers spend all of their income on. The VHSS project hopes to alleviate this financial burden and time constraint on women and families in South Sudan. The drastic reduction in time spent on collecting firewood and waiting for fires will alter a 7-hour workload to 1 hour. Furthermore, the wells dug by VHSS and various other organizations are a step towards food stability. These projects allow for women to collect more food or find alternative sources of income. The solar-power cooker project will be utilized where previous VHSS solar grids and water and sanitation projects are in place.
Ingredients
Small Household (3–4 people)
- 1 kg of maize/sorghum (3 ¼ cups of flour)
- 2 ¼ liters of water (7 cups)
Instructions
- Bring water to a boil.
- Slowly add flour, stirring continuously.
- Do not lower the temperature; stir and add until the flour and water become solid and resemble dough.
- Cover the top of the pan with a plate, hold the plate with your hand, and flip over.
