Five Unmissable Food Experiences in Uganda

1.  The Rolex
Not to be mistaken for the watch, the Rolex is one of Uganda's most pervasive street foods, found on almost corner throughout the Kampala. Street vendors start with a chapati, a simple ball of dough stretched into a circular disk which is then submerged into a pan of hot oil, till it's cooked through.  The vendor then cracks one or two eggs into a small cup mixing with salt, thin slivers of cabbage, and tomato.  With a hefty portion of oil the egg meets the pan and bubbles and fries until it is scooped up and placed on the chapati.   Rolling the whole thing up like a burrito, the Rolex is greasy, unhealthy, and delicious.

 

2. Matoke 

If one food that was to define Uganda matoke would be it. The simple plantain based food is a staple for most of the country, especially central areas like Kampala and Entebbe. On market days big bunches of green plantains are brought in from the country side, and quickly sold across the city. Making the dish requires a surprising amount of skill and patience. Women often take on this responsibility; coupling the small plantains in their hands they glide a knife between the skin and actual plantain, until it is released. Once the plantains are pealed they are wrapped in banana leaves and steamed over water until they turn yellow and soft. The texture-less dish has a slight bitter flavor due to the banana leaves, and is almost reminiscent of mashed potatoes.  

  

3. Millet 

Also known as Karo, millet is a cereal crop that is eaten at tables across Uganda. The grain which resembles small beads is ground up to make a powdered substance which is then blended with cassava flour. The combination is then added to boiling water and mixed together for around fifteen minutes, until it becomes a brown sticky ball. Removed from the pan, the millet is served in a small traditional basket made from papyrus.     

4. Posho

Known as the 'starving food' in the villages, posho is only eaten when there is nothing else... and if that doesn't wet your appetite for the stuff I don't know what will!  The white starchy dish is made with dried maize flour combine with boiling water.  The mixture is stirred for fifteen minutes or so until the water becomes absorbed and is almost fluffy. Completely tasteless, posho is usually accompanied with beans or some sort of sauce.    

5.Grasshoppers  Driving through the countryside at night, you may be unsure what you are looking at first, large iron sheets bathed in light surrounding a large barrel drum crowd the roadside, and are Uganda's famous grasshopper traps.  Unsuspecting grasshoppers, drawn to the light, are caught in the containers and harvested in the morning.  Deep fried in hot oil and dusted with salt, the crisp critters taste almost like a potato chip.