Heart (and Stomach) in Africa…

When I first met David Zukas he struck me as the visual negative of most of his painted subjects…blue eyes, straight longish blonde hair, plain nondescript facial features and pale white skin. He is the last person you would expect to be intimately involved in African culture. Just as striking is when he ties on an apron and effortlessly whips up traditional Ghanaian fare.

David was born and raised in the St. Louis area to blue-collar parents in a typical mid-western upbringing. His exposure to different types of cuisine was limited to the local Italian and Chinese restaurants in and around Granite City, IL. Upon arriving in Ghana as a Peace Corps volunteer in 1997, among the many adjustments he had to make was an acclimation of his palate to the local cuisine. Although West African food is now available in major cities with the influx of immigrants from Ghana, Senegal and Guinea, but in 1997 it may as well have been Martian food for a mid-western kid like David.

David, now a New York based artist, stayed an extra year in Ghana with the Peace Corps because he felt a very strongly about completing the work of building a school before leaving. This is where his love affair with African culture began. Themes from his experiences in Ghana are represented in the majority of his work. Scenes of children playing, bustling marketplaces, tribal rituals and even some darker social commentary that reflect the plight of both historical and displaced modern Africans.

Among the many life skills he developed while in the Peace Corps, cooking…and in particular…cooking with a West African flair…is one that I took a serious interest in when we met five years ago. The aroma of scotch bonnet peppers and palm oil fill the air of his kitchen when he is preparing dishes like Fufu and Akpele (the starchy staples of a Ghanaian diet) topped with stews like Fetri Detsi (okra) and Kotonmire (fish and vegetables). Fufu and Akpele are labor intensive, stone ground flour based dishes that even the Africans here in the states buy pre-ground at the market, so David makes no apologies for doing the same.

This food represents a time in his life that he cherishes and he truly enjoys preparing for his friends and family. Sharing food is almost always the way cultures (peacefully) intersect but David’s entire life exists at this cultural crossroads. His art and food complement the other, more important, cultural melding that his life encompasses, his family life. His wife, Regine, is from Haiti, they have a daughter (Anais) and a son on the way. Recently his artistic passions understandably shifted from the Western coast of Africa to the Eastern Caribbean. Even before the devastation Haiti experienced last month, David’s work had begun to focus on the empathy he feels for his wife’s homeland. He felt driven to help and beyond donating the funds from current art shows he went as far as organizing former Peace Corps volunteers in an attempt to get himself and others on the ground. The Peace Corps finally abandoned the plan so he is again focused on using his art to raise funds for Haiti.

David is also teaching himself to speak Creole and learning to cook the dishes that Regine makes at home. A Zukas family favorite is a very authentic dish called Djon Djon, a mushroom and rice based recipe. I have also had the pleasure of trying the special of the house…a citrus chicken…a recipe that Regine will not divulge the specifics of…but I’m working on it.

David’s artwork has a much broader reach than his cooking but both reveal so much about the man and the powerful grasp African culture has had on his life.

Kontomire Stew

Serve hot over boiled plantain, yam, rice, cocoyam, fufu or akpele

1.5 lbs cod

2 bundles of cocoyam leaves (kontomire) or spinach
2 medium sized tomatoes

1 large onion

Ginger

Cut 1.5 lbs cod into pieces, wash and season with a bit of salt, pepper, garlic and ginger. Place in a wok with palm oil and cook until tender. Season and slice the onion and tomatoes and add to wok. Wash and chop the kontomire or spinach leaves and add to wok. Add tablespoon of shito.

Cook for another 10 minutes.

*Shito or shitor is the secret ingredient. Ask for it as well as pre-ground fufu or akpele at West African grocery stores.

Djon Djon

1 small onion chopped

2 cups long grain rice

2 Tbsp vegetable oil

1 cup frozen lima beans or peas

3 whole cloves (optional)

2 cloves garlic- crushed

4 sprigs thyme

3 cups water djon djon was boiled in

½ tsp ground black pepper

1 1/2 tsp salt

2 Tbsp butter

2 cups djon djon mushrooms

1 scotch bonnet pepper

Boil mushrooms in 4 cups of water, on low heat for 20 minutes. Pour mixture in blender/food processor to liquefy. The liquid must be a deep rich black color, otherwise you will end up with grey instead of black rice, and the flavor will not be as intense. Strain the mixture, get rid of the mushrooms a set the liquid aside. Add oil to a cast-iron pot on medium heat. Sauté garlic, onion, for 2 minutes until translucent. Add lima beans, salt and pepper and let cook for about 7-8 minutes stirring occasionally. Add rice and stir for 3 minutes. Add mushroom water and thyme. Bring to a boil. Let the mixture cook until water evaporates. Once most of the water has evaporated, lower heat, stir rice with butter, and place the whole Scotch bonnet pepper on top of the rice. Cover pot tightly and cook for 20 minutes. Remove hot pepper and thyme. Stir before serving.

We often cook this rice with seafood, mostly shrimp and a type of crab that resembles blue crab. The best way to add the seafood is (once cleaned and marinated in lime, garlic, salt and pepper) to stir it in after the rice mixture has boiled for a couple of minutes but before the water has evaporated.