Senegalese tea culture is an important part of daily social life. The Senegalese tea-drinking custom is essentially similar to those of other countries in the West Africa region, such as Mali, Guinea, Gambia and Mauritania. In and around Senegal, tea is prepared and presented in an elaborate process, and known in the Wolof language as attaya, ataya or ataaya. [1]
Sometimes made with mint, the drink is particularly served as a social occasion after meals, and it's the beverage that is typically offered to friends and visitors. Drinking attaya is seen to promote conversation and maintain friendship because it takes a long time to prepare properly. [2] Indeed, some authors have referenced the act of making ataya as a form of practical relaxation along with meditation and yoga. [3]
Senegalese-style attaya is served in three separate stages, called "the three concoctions":
Chinese green tea leaves are put into the teapot with some water and mint leaves and boiled over a charcoal stove. Sugar is added to the teapot and the tea is poured into small glasses of a certain height and then poured back and forth from the glass to the teapot several times so that foam appears in the glass. The thicker the foam, the better the tea. [4]
One cookbook of African recipes recommends serving the tea immediately with a generous amount of sugar:
The Western African style of serving involves holding the tea pot high above the table and pouring the hot tea at least twelve inches through the air into small glasses. (Glasses made of glass, not porcelain cups.) If the sugar is added to the pot, the tea is sometimes poured from the glasses back into the pot (before anyone has sipped) and the process is repeated. This mixes the sugar into the tea. Western Africans generally drink their tea very sweet. [5]
The first glass has been described as having an intense sweetness that cancels out a strident tannic bitterness to give a shot that is almost narcotic in its effect. [6] The second glass is sweeter and the third is very sweet but much reduced in its bitterness because the same leaves are used to prepare all three glasses.
Words used in various ethnic languages to refer to the tea, the tiny metal teapot and the mint are typically borrowed from Arabic, pointing to the idea that Senegalese mint tea is of Moorish origin. [7]
More than 80% of the population from 15 to 60 years of age drink tea. Studies have shown that due to the high concentration of fluoride in green tea, the practice may aid in preventing dental diseases, specifically dental caries. [8]
The cultural importance of Senegalese tea drinking was underlined in the song Ataya, a track on Ismaël Lô's 1986 album, Natt.
Moroccan cuisine is the cuisine of Morocco, fueled by interactions and exchanges with many cultures and nations over the centuries. Moroccan cuisine is usually a mix of Arab, Berber, Andalusi, and Mediterranean cuisines, with minimal European and sub-Saharan influences. Like the rest of the Maghrebi cuisine, Moroccan cuisine has more in common with Middle Eastern cuisine than with the rest of Africa.
Sweet tea, also known as sweet iced tea, is a popular style of iced tea commonly consumed in countries such as the United States and Indonesia. Sweet tea is most commonly made by adding sugar or simple syrup to black tea while the tea is either brewing or still hot, although artificial sweeteners are also frequently used. Sweet tea is almost always served ice cold. It may sometimes be flavored, most commonly with lemon but also with peach, raspberry, or mint. The drink is sometimes tempered with baking soda to reduce its acidity. Although sweet tea may be brewed with a lower sugar and calorie content than most fruit juices and sodas, it is not unusual to find sweet tea with a sugar level as high as 22 degrees Brix, or 22 g per 100 g of liquid, a level twice that of Coca-Cola.
A teapot is a vessel used for steeping tea leaves or a herbal mix in boiling or near-boiling water, and for serving the resulting infusion which is called tea. It is one of the core components of teaware. Dry tea is available either in tea bags or as loose tea, in which case a tea infuser or tea strainer may be of some assistance, either to hold the leaves as they steep or to catch the leaves inside the teapot when the tea is poured. Teapots usually have an opening with a lid at their top, where the dry tea and hot water are added, a handle for holding by hand and a spout through which the tea is served. Some teapots have a strainer built-in on the inner edge of the spout. A small air hole in the lid is often created to stop the spout from dripping and splashing when tea is poured. In modern times, a thermally insulating cover called a tea cosy may be used to enhance the steeping process or to prevent the contents of the teapot from cooling too rapidly.
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Tea culture is defined by how tea is made and consumed, how people interact with tea, and the aesthetics surrounding tea drinking.
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American tea culture encompasses the methods of preparation and means of consumption of tea within the context of the culture of the United States.
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Hibiscus tea is a herbal tea made as an infusion from crimson or deep magenta-colored calyces (sepals) of the roselle flower. It is consumed both hot and cold. It has a tart, cranberry-like flavor.
Somali cuisine was influenced by many different countries mainly due to trade, but traditionally also varies from region to region due to the expansive landmass Somalis inhabit. It is the product of Somalia's tradition of trade and commerce. Some notable Somali specialties include kimis/sabaayad, canjeero/lahoh, xalwo (halwa), sambuusa (samosa), bariis iskukaris, and muqmad/odkac.
Egyptian cuisine makes heavy use of poultry, legumes, vegetables and fruit from Egypt's rich Nile Valley and Delta. Examples of Egyptian dishes include rice-stuffed vegetables and grape leaves, hummus, falafel, shawarma, kebab and kofta. ful medames, mashed fava beans; koshary, lentils and pasta; and molokhiya, bush okra stew. A local type of pita bread known as eish baladi is a staple of Egyptian cuisine, and cheesemaking in Egypt dates back to the First Dynasty of Egypt, with Domiati being the most popular type of cheese consumed today.
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The cuisine of Mauritania includes the culinary practices of Mauritania. Historically, what is now Mauritania has been influenced by Arab, Berbers and African peoples who have lived in and traversed the "stark" landscape marked with Sahara desert dunes in caravans. There is an overlap with Moroccan cuisine in the north and Senegalese cuisine in the south.
Arabic tea (Arabic: شاي عربي, romanized: šāy ʿarabiyy, (pronounced shay, is a variety of hot teas popular throughout the Arab world. It is commonly served to guests and business partners at meetings and social events, and has been drunk by Arab people for centuries.
Videos showing attaya tea drinking customs:
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