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Funje (Cassava Flour Porridge)

Funje (Cassava Flour Porridge) is a traditional Angolan recipe for a classic porridge made by stirring cassava flour into water and which is a staple accompaniment in Angola. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Angolan dish of: Funje (Cassava Flour Porridge).

prep time

20 minutes

cook time

45 minutes

Total Time:

65 minutes

Serves:

6

Rating:

Tags : Angola Recipes

Funje (also spelled funge) is the Angolan version of West African fufu made with dried cassava (manioc, yucca) flour rather than the more typical fermented and dried cassava flour of other West African countries. However, the preparation is the same. Here I present two ways of making it. The traditional labour-intensive method and a modern oven-based method.

Ingredients:

250g cassava flour (fuba)
500ml water

Method:

Traditional Method: What you need for the traditional method is a deep pan and a funje stick. This is a long-handled stout wooden spoon with a flattened oar-like blade (typically it's 35cm or longer). Almost every West African household has one of these (we have my wife's family version). For perfect funge you need twice the volume of water to the amount of cassava flour.

Bring the water to a boil and as soon as it's boiling remove from the flame, sit it on the floor, wrap in a cloth and hold steady with your feet. Add all the cassava flour in one go and beat energetically with the funje stick. You must beat very hard and fast as the mixture thickens rapidly and if you do not beat thoroughly you will end-up with lumps and hard 'kernels' rather than a smooth dough-like porridge.

Modern Method: Bring the water to a boil in a casserole dish. Meanwhile, beat the cassava flour into a bowl containing 500ml cold water until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Add this mixture to the boiling water, whisking to combine. Stir until the mixture is smooth then add a lid and place in an oven pre-heated to 180°C. Bake for about 45 minutes, or until the mixture has thickened to a dough-like consistency. And there you will have perfectly smooth funje without all the hard work and stirring.

Typically funje is used as an accompaniment to stews of greens, fish and meat.