FAW: Are you familiar with “Horchata”?
It’s not so clear how I come across what to write about. So I honestly do not remember where I came across this term, but i am sure it definetly was online, probably when I was checking up a recipe, oh yes! I remember, I was trying to find a recipe online for a very famous local drink from the northern part of Nigeria, and this popped up; horchata, I clicked on it and the journey down the rabbit hole didn’t seem to want to come to an end.
If you are Nigerian, you probably have no idea what this is, but I assure you, you do have some idea, just follow me, read on.
I did some mandatory para-military service for a year in Nigeria’s federal capital, Abuja FCT (Federal Capital Territory), I also had family there so I was happy to be there to experience the culture, food , drinks and even lifestyle. Although Abuja isn’t necessarily considered a core-northern state, it was pretty close to what you would call one. Their food, culture, drinks, and even fashion embodied all of that. Kunu was a very popular street drink usally served in plastic bottles or gounds; It is sometimes very milky and sweet, best drunk on a hot afternoon or after work, to unwind.
Although this was a drink very common and popular amongst the people of Northern Nigeria, it was a fan’s favorite in every part of the country. I grew up in the south side of Nigeria, Warri, Delta state to be precise and Kunu was also as popular.
Just so we do not loose track of what’s being discussed, this piece is supposed to highlight similarities between foods eaten in Nigeria and similar dishes made and eaten around other parts of the world. Kunu and Horchata share very close likeness and similarities; in texture, taste, sweetness level and even ingredients.
To the best of my understanding, Kunu is primarily made out of fermenting some type of grain, usually millet or sorghum, but there’s also other types; Kunu zaki is fermented millet drink, kunu gyada is made using rice, tiger nut is used in making kunu aya, while kunu dawa makes use of guinea corn. With Horchata, which originates from Spain, but mostly popular by Mexicans, it is made by blending white rice and cinnamon sticks in water and letting them soak overnight. After the rice and cinnamon are discarded, the remaining liquid is then flavored with vanilla, sugar, and ground cinnamon. Horchata is often thickened with milk and always served cold. They share mode of preparation similarities in the sense that both involve “soaking/fermenting” of whatever grain is being used.
I am not so much a fan of this drink, only because I'm also not a big fan of Cinammon, Kunu is sweet o, but this is indeed sweeter. Kunu is usually sweetened with Dates and even fresh ginger roots; love it! It is moderate, and the ginger gives it that slighty spicy taste — makes my consuming this drink seem like its healthier, lol.
Again, it is very interesting to learn about and see these sort of things play out in my everyday interaction with food; the fact that the foods we eat are not particularly exclusive to us, well some may be sha. I am waiting to see a variant of Amala from another culture, lol.
FOODS ACROSS THE WORLD (FAW) is a series curated by me, the idea is to draw connecting lines between African foods and foods found all around the world while highlighting interesting facts about their history and similarities.
