Cooking as a form of self-care and wellness

Cooking as a form of self-care and wellness

I grew up in a West African household where cooking and baking was an important part of my life. My mother had a demanding diplomatic career, however still found the time to make nutritious and delicious meals.  My mother hated cooking though ….. she claimed.  The problem with West African cuisine is that it takes a lot of energy, seasoning and time which were in short supply for my mother.   For my mother cooking symbolized love.   

My brain is rife with memories of Mummy baking from scratch cornbread and making a pot of Liberian palm butter on weekends.  Liberian and Sierra Leonean cuisine is a curious mixture of indigenous African, Afro-Caribbean, and Southern African-American food. When I would try to convince Mummy to cook cuisines from other countries, she could only come up with an English shepard’s pie which I didn’t like.  My sister and I were obssessed with recipes from different parts of the world and cookbooks.  My sister was given an easy bake oven at the age of six.    

When I moved to the DRC for work, I had to learn to expand my cooking. I had been spoilt by my mother’s cooking and she would always have me assist her but never actually cook a meal unless it was for myself.  I only knew how to cook two dishes okra stew and check rice with tomato gravy stew.   I knew that if I wanted to eat well or starve I would have to learn by trial and error.   At first, my cooking was very bad.  My rice was always soggy, sometimes the food would be bland or not cooked well enough.  

Over the years, I worked on perfecting my Liberian cuisine and it has paid off.  I can cook tasty pots of cassava leaves and palaver sauce. I expanded into Italian, Chinese and Indian cuisine.  I am also a big proponent of finding ways to make my West African cooking healthier through less palm oil,  maggie cubes  and red meats.  Cooking for me has become a way of creativity and self-care.  When I am in my kitchen cooking up my jallof rice and baking short bread or my chicken vindaloo,  its an escape that takes me away.  The spices, the smells, the mixing, chopping and dicing are therapeutic. I also find watching other people cook as therapeutic and I love cooking shows.  Knowing that in the end I have accomplished making something that is delicious and nutritious gives me satisfaction.