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N'dolé (Bitterleaf Stew)

N'dolé (Bitterleaf Stew) is a traditional Cameroonian recipe for a classic stew of fish, crabs, bitterleaves and chillies in a tomato and coconut milk stock thickened with peanuts. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Cameroonian version of: Bitterleaf Stew (N'dolé).

prep time

20 minutes

cook time

90 minutes

Total Time:

110 minutes

Serves:

6–8

Rating:

Tags : Chilli RecipesVegetable RecipesCameroon Recipes

This is, very definitely the national dish of Cameroon. N'dolé is the local name for the leaf, known in Nigeria as 'bitterleaf'. This can be found, typically dried, in African supermarkets. Though many recipes suggest that you can substitute spinach, a better substitute would be kale or betel leaves. Originally, the dish derived from the Douale peoples of the Atlantic coast of Cameroon and was made with seafood (as here), though, these days it is also commonly made with chicken (see the recipe for Chicken N'dolé/

Ingredients:

1.4kg firm white fish, cut into steaks
2 crabs
1 onion, roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves
4 tomatoes, sliced into wedges
2 bayleaves
Nam Pla (fish sauce), to taste
4 tbsp raw, shelled, peanuts, blanched and chopped
120ml coconut milk
1 bunch bitterleaf (or kale or betel leaves)
1 tbsp groundnut oil
1 tsp ginger, minced
2 tsp garlic, minced
2 hot chillies, finely minced

Method:

Place the crabs on a plate, set in a steamer basket and steam over boiling water for about 15 minutes, or until done through. Remove from the steamer and set aside to cool. Once chilled to room temperature, open the shell, crack the claws and extract the meat.

Take the pieces of crab shell and use to make crab stock. Heat a little oil in a pan, add the onion and crab shell pieces and fry for a few minutes then stir in the garlic, tomatoes and bayleaves. Pour over enough water to cover, bring to a simmer, cover with a lid and cook for 45 minutes. After this time, take off the heat and strain the stock through a fine-meshed sieve.

Heat a little oil in a pan, add the fish steaks and fry until browned all over then take off the heat.

In the meantime, place the peanuts in a blender and process finely. Add the coconut milk and process until smooth then pour into a pan and simmer gently for 30 minutes. Add the bitterleaf and cook until wilted. Using a hand blender (or a food processor) blend the mixture until smooth. Season with the fish sauce, add 500ml of the crab stock, return to a simmer, add the fish steaks and cook for about 15 minutes, or until done through.

Take the mixture off the heat and whisk in the groundnut oil then add the brown crab meat. Turn into a bowl and scatter the white crab meat over the top. Serve accompanied by fufu.