Previously sidelined by modern food systems, indigenous African grains are now making a bold return to food conversations. Once staples across the continent, nutrient-rich grains, like sorghum and millet, are experiencing a renewed appreciation for their flavour, sustainability, and deep cultural roots. 

Image: Getty

This revival is driven by a few things, says Zandile Finxa, founder of The Sorghum Agenda and Assistant Product Developer at Woolworths. Launched in 2019, The Sorghum Agenda aims to re-establish sorghum as a staple food and a sustainable crop across South Africa and beyond. While the pandemic’s health focus put ancient grains back in the spotlight, the International Year of Millets in 2023 played a large role, sparking curiosity and innovation around lesser-known grains. “Not only did the new nutrition-led awareness bring attention to ancient grains such as amaranth, teff, and spelt, but it also started to showcase grains like millet, fonio, and sorghum,” Zandile explains. 

A deep cultural history 

In the past, grains like sorghum were once central to African diets before the rise of more commercial crops like rice and maize. “African dishes, historically, have mostly been told word-of-mouth, from family to family,” Zandile says. “Learning the recipes from your elders was always the passing of a baton. One that came with pride. However, pride comes at a cost, as many of our recipes haven’t had as much preservation as Westernised cuisines.” Yet, as interest in heritage foods grows, so, too, does the desire to revive these recipes and cooking techniques, blending cultural memory with culinary exploration.

Chef, food entrepreneur and Eat Out Woolworths Trailblazer Award winner Siba Mtongana highlights the significance of these grains in African food culture. “At the CANEX WKND 2024 in Algeria, where I moderated a panel with remarkable chefs from across Africa and the diaspora, we explored the significance of these grains in our food culture. However, they haven’t achieved the same commercial visibility as imported grains like rice or pasta,” Siba reflects. Unfortunately, traditional grains have long been perceived as “cheaper alternatives” rather than celebrated for their nutrient density and environmental resilience. But with more chefs, food media, restaurants, bloggers and content creators utilising these ingredients, a new pride-filled approach is taking hold. 

Zola Nene is one of many chefs who welcomes the shift. “Our ancestors survived and thrived on these grains that somehow became forgotten. I’m so glad to see a newfound interest in exploring the produce from our own soil,” she says. She notes that sorghum is beginning to make appearances on restaurant menus, transformed into creative dishes like risottos and desserts, and even served in popcorn form as a garnish.

With this revived interest, Zandile says that consumers are starting to learn more about ancient grains and even seek them out in stores. 

Image: Jan Ras

“You see this in how much innovation Woolworths has brought to showcase ancient grains; from the ancient grain crackers, cereals, whole grains and bakery breads – there is a new Amasi and Sorghum Tear and Share bread that everyone HAS to try!”

The role of restaurants and chefs

At Eat Out star restaurant Ouzeri, chef Nic Charalambous incorporates sorghum molasses as a dressing on dishes, The Potluck Club‘s Jason Kosmas garnishes popped grains on his chicken and sweetbread dish, while Wolfgat’s Kobus van der Merwe offers a version of sorghum-based biscuits, and The LivingRoom at Summerhill Guest Estate showcases the grain in a “mabele porridge”, a dessert blending traditional flavours with touches of vanilla and homemade amasi. Chef Johannes Richter explains that this South African staple forms the heart of his dessert. “We work to get all the characteristics of the sorghum woven throughout the dish in various forms: as sour porridge, puffed grain, and toasted elements that bring out its rich, nutty flavours,” he says. This complexity and nostalgia resonate with diners, offering them both comfort and a sense of rediscovered heritage.

Image: Jono Nienaber

For chef, activist and former Eat Out judge Mokgadi Itsweng, traditional grains hold untapped potential both in restaurants and daily cooking. “They tell a special story of a sustainable local food system,” she says. In her own kitchen, she uses sorghum in novel ways, from smoothies to salads, and even ferments it into ting, a South African staple enjoyed at breakfast or dinner.

Chef Vusi Ndlovu, founder of EDGE, MLILO at Time Out Market Cape Town and the African Culinary Library, sees even broader possibilities: “Once chefs have access to, and information about, African grains, amazing things will happen. Sorghum is great, but there’s more out there.” Through experimenting with millet, he discovered its nutty, grassy flavour could lend itself to unexpected applications like ice cream. 

To make grains like sorghum and millet more accessible, Mokgadi suggests food manufacturers could create products like puffed cereals, modelled after familiar favourites. Zola agrees: “Indigenous grains should be as simple to find as pasta and rice on the shelves,” she says, sharing that she loves substituting millet for rice, especially in dishes like her chakalaka millet for Sunday lunch.  

For those unfamiliar with cooking indigenous grains, Zandile advises beginning with familiar dishes. “Start at the very base of your comfort. If you grew up on porridge, you’ll probably start with Maltabella or mabele a ting,” she suggests. “Replace one pap dish with ting ya mabele – stiff sorghum pap. Don’t complicate it too much. Think of it as coming back home to yourself.” 

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A shift in perspective

With chefs and retailers like Woolworths leading the way, the movement to bring indigenous grains back to the table has captured foodies’ imaginations. Johannes hopes that through his menu, he can encourage diners to consider these grains in their home cooking. “By sharing the nutritional and ecological advantages of these indigenous grains, we hope to spark a shift in mindset, inspiring diners to appreciate and seek out these ingredients as part of a sustainable, culturally enriched diet.”  

“Chefs and restaurants alone can’t drive this change,” notes Siba. “It will take support from across the culinary and media landscapes. Cooking-show chefs, cookbook authors, food enthusiasts, influencers, bloggers, and other content creators all play vital roles in normalising these grains. As attention grows, through education, storytelling, and visibility, we can reintroduce these grains as integral to modern diets, bridging the gap between tradition and contemporary cooking while celebrating the richness of African culinary heritage.”  

Woolworths is the headline sponsor of the Eat Out Woolworths Restaurant Awards. The 2025 ceremony will take place on 31 March.