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If classic menus can be found, there are also some local specialties, some of which should intrigue tourists such as the following recipe which can be counted among pastries, except it is not baked in an oven: these are the large brown rolls, sold open air, on small street side tables in the capital: the ''koban-dravina'', a specialty of the Antananarivo area. As the use of the oven is not familiar to everyone, certain artisans have discovered a method of making a kind of local cake, the mixture cooked in water in a large pot for two days over a large wooden fire and constantly stirred. Here is the recipe: rice flour mixed with sugar and whole, unroasted peanuts. The mix is then carefully wrapped in banana leaves and firmly tied with fibres from the bark of a plant before being placed in the cooking pot with water. These rolls wrapped in banana leaves browned by cooking are sold retail and sliced at the request of the customer.
Stimulation of the appetite is also part of the Malagasy food habits and for this there are two tangy spices: these are ginger and chilli used in different ways. In fact, ginger while flavouring some dishes, is also a remedy against colds and flu and perfect for restoring those from a long trip or feeling tired: there is nothing like a good chicken broth with ginger to dispel any of these problems. As for chilli peppers, consumed only by those who can put up with the very pungent taste and burning of the mouth if abused. It is also used against fevers, as when this spice is mixed with broth it promotes sweating which brings down the body temperature.
Visiting Madagascar provides an opportunity for unexpected discoveries apart from the marvels of the natural sites, because beside them there are other ways of getting to know the country by the observation of its traditions and also experiencing the modernised use of its resources.
