Why every woman should read Yemisi Aribisala’s Longthroat Memoirs- Soups, Sex and Nigerian Taste Buds

“The Yorubas are self-conscious about having one of the least imaginative cuisines in Nigeria and are as finicky about their stews as they are about headtie trends. Only a Yoruba stew cannot be like gele; it isn’t really allowed to be trendy.

In every Yoruba home, in the middle of every afternoon, there is a stew pot resting on the hob with the lid slightly askew.

The jokes about Yoruba people and their stews, about the habitual, come-rain-or-shine pot of omi-obe, are threadbare. Omi-obe literally translates as “stew water”. It means exactly that: the body of the stew minus meat or fish. It is unquestionably derogatory when it comes out of my Igbo friends’ mouths. “What’s for lunch?” they ask provocatively. “Omi-obe?” Meaning, what else could possibly be for lunch! For the Yoruba person it is omi-obe with everything.”

-An excerpt from Yemisi Aribisala’s Longthroat Memoirs: Soups, Sex and Nigerian Taste Buds