Potential Role of African Fermented Indigenous Vegetables in Maternal and Child Nutrition in Sub-Saharan Africa

Table 1

Diversity of African indigenous vegetables [10, 13, 15, 21, 30, 38, 39, 42, 46–55].

Vegetable	Consumed parts	Scientific name	Region where they are consumed
Black African nightshades	Leaves and young shoots	Solanum nigrum and S. scabrum	Tropical Africa
African spider plant	Leaves and young shoots	Cleome gynandra	Tropical Africa and semiarid regions
African eggplant	Berries	Solanum aethiopicum	Central, East tropical, and Eastern Africa
Jute mallow	Leaves and young shoots	Corchorus olitorius	East Africa
Amaranthus	Leaves and young shoots	Amaranthus cruentus	Tropical and semiarid Africa
Roselle hibiscus	Flowers and seeds	Hibiscus sabdariffa	Eastern Africa
Cowpeas	Leaves and young shoots	Vigna unguiculata	Tropical Africa
Baobab	Leaves, young shoots, and fruits	Adansonia digitata	West, Central, and East tropical Africa
Moringa	Leaves, bark, roots, and fruits	Moringa oleifera	West, Central, and East tropical Africa
Cassava leaves	Leaves	Manihot esculenta	West, Central, and East tropical Africa
Plumed cockscomb or silver cock’s comb	Flower and leaves	Celosia argentea	West, Central, and East tropical Africa
Mkula	Leaves and young shoots	Pterocarpus mildbraedii	West tropical and East tropical Africa
Sickle pod	Leaves	Senna obtusifolia	Eastern Africa/semiarid regions
Watercress	Leaves and young shoots	Rorippa madagascariensis	Tropical Africa
Burweed	Leaves	Triumfetta annua	All over tropical Africa
Kenaf	Young leaves and shoots	Hibiscus cannabinus	Tropical regions
Sorrel	Young shoots	Oxalis, Rumex acetosa	Tropical regions
		Cucumis africanus	Southern Africa
Ethiopian kale	Leaves	Brassica carinata	Northern and Eastern Africa
Sweet potato leaves	Leaves	Ipomea batata	Tropical Africa
Beans leaves	Leaves	Phaseolus vulgaris	Tropical Africa
Taro root leaves	Leaves	Colocasia esculenta	Tropical Africa
Blackjack	Young shoots	Bidens pilosa	Tropical Africa
Chayote	Fruit	Sechium edule	Tropical Africa
Chicken spike	Young leaves and shoots	Sphenoclea zeylanica	Africa
Turkey berries	Berries	Solanum torvum	Tropical Africa
Okra	Pod	Abelmoschus esculentus & A. caillei	Tropical Africa and semiarid regions
Sesame	Seeds	Sesamum indicum	Tropical, subtropical, and temperate Africa
Pumpkin leaves	Leaves	Cucurbita moschata & C. maxima	Africa
Bacon weed	Leaves	Chenopodium album	Tropical Africa
Groundnut	Beans	Arachis hypogea	Tropical Africa
Watercress	Leaves and young shoots	Nasturtium aquatica	Tropical Africa
Stinging nettle	Leaves and young shoots	Urtica dioica	Tropical and arid regions of Africa
Arrow leaf/elephant’s ear	Leaves	Xanthosoma mafaffa	Tropical Africa
African foxglove	Leaves	Ceratotheca triloba	Southern Africa
Yellow Justicia	Leaves	Justicia flava	Tropical and Southern Africa
Waterleaf	Leaves	Talinum triangulare	West tropical Africa
Slender leaf	Leaves	Crotalaria brevidens	Tropical Africa and cultivated in temperate regions
Gallant soldier	Leaves	Galinsoga parviflora	Tropical Africa
Bitter leaf	Leaves	Vernonia amygdalina	Tropical and Southern Africa