The complete directory
15 foods match this view. Search local names, narrow the map, or follow a category.
Sierra Leone
Bittas
A Sierra Leonean leaf stew made from bitter leaves (Vernonia amygdalina) that are repeatedly washed and pounded to remove bitterness, then simmered in palm oil with ogiri, meat or fish, and pepper; a special-occasion dish on Saturdays and holidays.
Liberia
Cassava Leaf Soup
Sierra Leone's beloved cassava leaf stew: finely chopped cassava leaves slowly simmered with red palm oil, groundnuts, ogiri, smoked fish or meat, and scotch bonnet pepper until thick and dark green; a weekly staple eaten over rice.
Sierra Leone
A creamy, nutty Sierra Leonean stew built from ground peanut paste, tomato, onion, leafy greens, and chicken, fish, or beef; mildly sweet, deeply savoury, and served over rice or with fufu.
Ghana
Kontomire
Cocoyam leaves boiled down and cooked with palm oil, egusi, onion, smoked fish and boiled egg.
Sierra Leone
A Sierra Leonean jute-leaf stew cooked with palm oil and fish or meat.
Sierra Leone
A thick Sierra Leonean sauce of pounded eggplant, pepper, okra, sesame (benne), and dried powdered fish; served over rice, with a smoky, nutty, and slightly slimy texture similar to Guinea's footi.
Sierra Leone
A thick, green Sierra Leonean stew in which okra pods are the star, simmered with palm oil, dried fish, chicken, beef, or crab, and aromatics; the okra gives it a silky, viscous body.
Sierra Leone
A vivid red Sierra Leonean stew in which red palm oil is the defining fat and flavour, cooked with krain krain or other greens, fish, turkey, chicken, goat, and aromatics; the colour alone is unmistakable.
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leonean cassava-leaf stew cooked with palm oil, fish or meat and aromatic pepper.
DR Congo
Saka saka
The beloved national staple of the Congo — cassava leaves pounded into a fine paste and slow-cooked for hours with palm oil, onions, garlic, and often smoked fish or beef; rich in protein, vitamins, and minerals; the palm oil gives a characteristic reddish-brown color and nutty flavor; served with fufu, chikwangue, or plantains; the backbone of daily Congolese dining.
Sierra Leone
Krain Krain
Sierra Leone's silky, slightly sticky potato-leaf stew: jute mallow or sweet potato leaves are pounded and simmered with palm oil, ogiri, onion, pepper, and dried fish; often called krain krain and a close cousin to cassava leaf plassas.
Ghana
Black-eyed peas stewed with palm oil, tomato, onion and chilli until deep orange, served with fried ripe plantain and gari.
Togo
Miyan Geda
A rich, creamy Togolese peanut sauce simmered with chicken, beef, or fish, tomatoes, onion, and palm oil; one of the most common sauces and a key partner to akoumé and fufu.
Sierra Leone
A rainforest spice soup from Sierra Leone made with tola, a wild forest seed that gives the soup a slippery, okra-like texture; cooked with fish or meat and served with rice, fufu, or plantain.
Sierra Leone
A hearty traditional Mende stew of cassava, yam, sweet potato, onion, ginger, tomato paste, peanut butter, turmeric, and chilli; can be vegan or enriched with chicken, and is a warming one-pot dish from Sierra Leone's south.