While Nigerian and Ghanaian food are finally beginning to receive the recognition they deserve, Sierra Leonean cuisine remains one of Britain’s least represented food cultures.
That is slowly changing thanks to chefs like Maria Bradford, whose restaurant, Shwen Shwen, has become one of the country’s most compelling champions of Sierra Leonean cooking. From groundnut stews and palm butter to grains of paradise, smoked seafood and vibrant spice blends, the cuisine reflects centuries of trade, migration and cultural exchange across West Africa.