Good morning, Steemians from Nigeria and all over the world. Please accept my humble greetings from the country of Cameroon. Today is the first day of November with new challenges and new contests. And I am happy to be part of it.

^{Design on Canva}

Introduction

This week’s theme is "Special food for dinner." Dinner is a time where food is consumed during the evening after a long strenuous day, families usually gather around diner to share their difficulties they faced, the good news of the day or of the upcoming event. During dinner, there is usually a special food that is consumed and I will bring along a special food that is consumed by most Cameroonians, especially in the West Region, that I will tell you more about by following this contest guideline.

Suggest special food that will suit special occasions like dinner parties.

What I will suggest is a food consumed by the Bamilleke’s people (a tribe found in the west region of Cameroon) calles "Achu". Achu is pounded cocoyam with yellow soup (yellow soup is warmed palm oil mixed with natural limestone and local dried spices), accompanied by cooked meat, fried or boiled fish, fried vegetables (commonly called "Njama-Njama"), and Egussi Pudding.

^{Achu Plate}
When all of these ingredients are combined, it gives the Achu its distinct flavor.

What are the health benefits?

An interesting fact about Achu is that it contains all the major classes of nutrients:

carbohydrates,fat and oils, proteins, and the minor classes of nutrients, minerals, omega-3 acid, and fibers...

Nutrient Present	Source
Carbohydrates	Cocoyams
Fats and oils	Soup (palm oil)
Proteins	Meat, Fish, Egussi Pudding
Minerals	Limestone, vegetables
Omega-3 Acids	Fish
Fibres	Vegetables, Egussi Pudding

As you can see from the above table, Achu is a complete meal on its own, containing all the nutrients necessary for the healthy growth of an individual.

Why have you chosen this particular food for this occasion?

I selected Achu because of its cultural story. In Cameroon, Achu is also called the "food of the nobles" because, back in the olden days, only rich people and people from royalty could eat it on special occasions. Another reason is that Achu is my traditional meal. When we saw this meal, we thought about the Mbouda people (Mbouda is a village in the West Region of Cameroon), and the idea of sharing it with you people was appetising to me.

Have you prepared this food before? Name at least 5 major ingredients that are used to prepare this special food whether you have prepared it before or not.

Yes, I have already cooked the food before with my mother. Through generations, since it is an inheritance from our culture, both the boys and girls of our family know how to cook it, and through generations, the recipe has been passed from parent to child.

^{The two pictures above shows my brother and I pounding Achu under the supervision of my mother}

The main ingredients are

• Cocoyam (banana, option);
• Palm oil;
• Limestone;
• Meat and fish;
• Vegetables, pepper (optional).

Why does food add beauty to special occasions?

When a hungry person is fully satisfied, there is dopamine released in great quantities and makes people happy. This food adds beauty to a community because when we eat it, we speak one common language, the Achu language. An occasion without Achu in our house is not a complete occasion.

Note: These are old pictures taken with my family when I was still with them on my red me 9 phone and the images were corrected using Photoshop express.

Please, @pea07, @adylinah, @wase1234, @thegreens, come and share your special meal with us.

25% reward to @null

Kind regards
@fonjougiresse