Unrefined red palm oil (Elaeis guineensis) has been cultivated and used in West African cooking for at least 5,000 years — archaeological evidence from Yoruba sites in Nigeria dates palm oil use to at least 3,000 BCE. The oil was among the most valuable trade goods of pre-colonial West Africa and was deliberately targeted by European colonial powers who recognised its agricultural and economic value. Its specific flavour, colour, and nutritional profile (extraordinarily high in beta-carotene — one of the richest natural sources in the world) make it irreplaceable in the cooking traditions that developed around it.
Red palm oil's role in West African cooking — its specific properties and applications.
WEST AFRICAN CULINARY TRADITION — DEEP EXTRACTION