The LOST Recipe of Black Rice

In the late 15th century, Portuguese explorers noted the flourishing rice cultivation in West Africa, a skill deeply rooted in local communities. Tragically, the transatlantic slave trade brought these expert rice cultivators to the Americas, where their knowledge transformed agriculture. Their expertise cultivated what became known as Carolina Gold. By the 1700s, African skills were so valued that areas like Charleston saw a surge in Rice Coast Africans, reshaping the economy of the Lowcountry

Join us as we explore how this world of Black Rice 

Audio Onemichistory.com

Follow me on Instagram: @onemic_history
Follow me on Treadsr: https://www.threads.net/@onemic_history
Follow me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Onemichistory

Please support our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=25697914
Buy me a Coffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Countryboi2m

Sources:
Black Rice; The African Origins of Rice Cultivation in the Americas by Judith A. Carney

The Cooking Gene by Michael W. Twitty 

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/one-mic-black-history--4557850/support.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Throughout history, rights has been more than just a full source.
It is a thread intertwined with the destiny of entire communities.
Along with this grain lies African rights. The rice hints
at ancient secrets from Western Africa. This grain embarked on
a dark, periless journey across the Atlantic, with enslaved Africans

(00:24):
crying secrets of survival and adaptation. This grain is far
from ordinary. Black rice stands as a sacred link to
our ancestors, a powerful symbol of heritage resilience within the
African diaspora. So tonight we invite you to delve into
the history of black rice. And if you like stories

(00:48):
like this, you can find more stories like this one
michistory dot com. But without further ado, let's get started
in the heart of Western Africa, along the banks of
the Niger. This region became the birthplace of African rice
around three hundred a d. Unlike its more famous Asian cousins,

(01:10):
this species shares a unique lineage, deeply intertwined with the
land and its people. African rice is akin to wild
African rice in the same way that Asian rice is
akin to Asian wild rice. Yet these two strains emerged
completely independent of each other. African wild rice once thrived

(01:34):
wildly across numerous habitats. However, to hear to our transformation
shifting from a wetther to much drier climate, ancient massive
lakes in what is today western Tahara would dry up,
and as such the wild rice became more dependent humans
for its survival. This would ultimately lead to its domestication.

(01:58):
African farmers were true architects of this agricultural landscape. In
rain fed uplands, they synchronized planting with the seasons, employing
simple tools such as hoes or even the heels of
their feet to let the groundwork for a bountiful harvest. Meanwhile,
in swampy lowlands, these farmers designated earthen embankments that transformed

(02:23):
difficult terrain into productive fields. Along these celenial prone cultural estuaries,
a complex network of embankments and dykes tidal canals were constructed,
turning these hostile environments into fertile rice paddies. Western Africans
knew how to grow in a variety of different environments,

(02:47):
so throughout this agricultural evolution, it was black women who
stood at the forefronts. They were the guardians of seeds
and the bearers of the profound knowledge. They made strategic
select that kept rice cultivation robust, and their knowledge was
nuanced and an encompassed flood tolerance, past resistance, and passing

(03:10):
on the wisdom down to subsequent generations. So it's not
surprising that the rise of the Ghana Mali of the
Sanghai Empires was far from accidental. Their prominence was largely
fueled by their strategic mastery over rice, a grain that
was synonymous with wealth and subsistence. This vital crop boasted

(03:33):
their ability to withstand the relentless Saharian droughts. Along with
nourishing the banks of the Niger the synagogue in the
Bonni Rivers, expansive wetlands would blossom with the rice fields,
so staining the local population and supplying surplus grain, fish,
and meat to busy transaherent trade caravans. So by the

(03:56):
fifteenth and sixteenth century, Portugal explorers became the first to
document the prolific cultivation along southern rivers in Western Africa,
in an area that would later become known as the
Rice Coats. This expertise in rice cultivation would then unintentionally
make its way across the Atlantic during the traged period

(04:20):
of the Transatlantic slave trade, and slaved Africans would be
brought to the Americas, carrying with them an invaluable agricultural knowledge,
and often they would manage to transport rice seeds cleverly
braided into their hair. Beginning in the fifteen fifties with
their arrival in Brazil and later in the late seventeen

(04:40):
hundreds reaching the United States, these African rice cultivators would
leave an indelible mark on agricultural practices within the New World.
The traditional story of the introduction of rice to the
Carolina colonies would be credited to an English ship captain
who allegedly gifted rice for Madagascar in sixteen eighty five. However,

(05:03):
this story has faced fierce criticism. Many historians suggest that
it was actually Africans, who were already deeply versed in
rice cultivation, who were the first to plant rice in
the Carolinas. It's believed that both Asian and African rice
species were likely grown there, potentially originating from a variety

(05:24):
of different sources, including aboard slave ships. Enslaved Africans would
play a crucial role in transforming the agricultural landscape in
the Americans by developing crops that aligned with their references.
One notable example of this is with African rice, which
demonstrated an exceptional ability to thrive in the brackish waters

(05:45):
in the New World's cultural deltas. Its rice would gain
prominence in areas like South Carolina, where it became known
as Carolina gold. Interestingly enough, the intermingling of different rice
species in the America suggests that Carolina gold may have
been of Asian origins, as both African and Asian rice

(06:07):
varieties were present in the area at the time. However,
Southern planters assumed that Carolina gold was of African origins
because they were being planted by enslaved Africans. Nevertheless, by
the seventeen hundreds, the economic landscape in the Carolinas was
so deeply intertwined with the expertise of Africans from the

(06:29):
Rice coast that Carolina planters recognized the unmatched skill of
these individuals in rice cultivation, prioritizing their importance over all others.
Their preference was evident in the bustling ports of Charleston
and Savannah, which saw a steady influx of enslaved Africans

(06:49):
from this region, the economic significance of rice quickly eclipsed
that of even indigo or cotton as the primary crop
in the region. Civil War marked the decline of Carolina's
once bustling rice economy. However, for African Americans, rice would
continue to hold its cultural significance, specifically with black communities

(07:13):
in the low country regions of South Carolina and Georgia.
Drawing on their ancestral heritage, these communities infused new life
into rice farming by cultivating the esteemed Carolina gold. So
throughout the twentieth century, rice remained a vital element for
both cultural and economic spheres, serving as a staple in

(07:34):
intimate family gatherments or large community celebrations. Dishes like hoppin
John is a quintessential example of this tradition. Its roots
can be traced all the way back to Africa and
the Caribbean sugar plantations. This dish combines rice with black
eyed peas or tiny red peas and often cooked with bacon.
It initially gained popularity among enslaved communities, and, according to

(07:58):
the folklore, eating hopping john on New Year's Day brings prosperity,
with the saying the states that eat poor on New
Year's Day eat rich the rest of the year. However,
the rich cultural narratives of African Americans and rice is
complicated by commercial representation of figures like Uncle Ben. During

(08:21):
introduced in nineteen forty six, the brand featured and image
of a fictitious black man named Uncle Ben, echoing these
stereotypes of uncle and Mammy figures commonly leaves and advertising
during the era. This depletion, often lacking in individuality, serving
primary to create a comforting narrative for a predominantly white

(08:42):
consumer base, while being disconnected from a genuine historical narrative
of African American expertise and contributions to rice agriculture. Uncle
Ben was supposedly named after a black rice pharmal celebrated
for his high quality crop, although the real individual behind
a name has never been conclusively identified. Over decades, the

(09:06):
brand became an American household staple. However, the image of
Uncle Ben gradually evolved into a mere product icon, detached
from its deeper historical context. This plays a bit into
the history of rice in America because it is inastrictly
linked to the stories of black cultivators whose contributions were

(09:28):
often overlooked. While historically martinalized as just laborers, these black
individuals were actually pioneers of significant agricultural transformation, laying a
foundation that reaches far into cultural and culinary territories, and
their legacy remains an integral part of America's culinary landscape,

(09:53):
highlighting the ever enduring legacy of Black Americans on this country.
Thank you, I'm your host country, poor and this is
the story of Black Rice. If you like stories like this,
you could find more stories like this to onemcstory dot com.
Like to thank all my Sonatural contributors. Without you, none
of this could be possible and base