Last year when I was in Zimbabwe, I decided to make madhumbe flour. I did not want to make it into a post, I wanted to make it into a product. I did not have a plan for this as I was coming back to Bermuda in a few weeks. I did it anyway.
Let me say this, I don’t think this was the most innovative thing I have created. There are other tubers like potatoes, sweet potatoes and cassava that have been made into flours before and you can find them in shops everywhere. I have not come across madhumbe flour though which is why I decided to try this.
I have been looking at this flour for over a year now and wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with it. It feels rather selfish to keep this to myself. While I may not be able to do produce the flour, I think someone else reading this could make something with it.
Why Madhumbe Flour
- Madhumbe are relatively easy to grow and need fewer supplements compared to wheat. Madhumbe are grown in the rainy season so will generally not need additional irrigation compared to wheat which is grown in the drier winter months in Zimbabwe.
- Madhumbe flour can be used in many diets like gluten-free and nut-free diets.
- Madhumbe flour can be used as a replacement for wheat flour in most recipes in the ratio 1:1.
- Having madhumbe flour means you can have madhumbe all year round and will mean less waste of madhumbe that will not be eaten fresh.
In the coming weeks, I will share some recipes that use this madhumbe flour. I hope it will inspire someone out there.