
Henakisoa sy Ravitoto (Malagasy Pork with Cassava Leaves)
Abuja, Nigeria ·
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Abuja, Nigeria ·
Pork browned and cooked slowly with ravitoto, pounded cassava leaves, until the meat is tender and the greens have collapsed into a dense, dark mass. It is Malagasy, and it is close to a national dish. The page needs an immediate correction. Its title, henakisoa sy amalona, means pork with eel, and that dish is real: one of the seven royal dishes of the Merina highlands, and genuinely divisive in Madagascar, since some communities do not eat pork and the pairing of pork with fish is unusual. **But the recipe attached to this page contains no eel.** It is pork with ravitoto, which is a different and far more common dish, and the source's own prose drifts into describing that one instead. The recipe here follows the ingredients, and the title has been changed to name what is actually made. The URL is unchanged. Ravitoto is worth knowing about. Cassava leaves are pounded, traditionally in a wooden mortar, and the pounding is the defining step, giving the name, then cooked long and slow. Cassava leaves must be thoroughly cooked, as the raw leaf is toxic. Tinned or frozen ravitoto sold at African grocers has already been processed. Ravitoto sy henakisoa is commonly described as Madagascar's national dish, though the Merina royal tradition holds otherwise.
Ravitoto sy henakisoa is a Malagasy dish of pork cooked with pounded cassava leaves, widely described as a national dish of Madagascar. Henakisoa sy amalona, pork with eel, is a separate dish counted among the seven royal dishes of the Merina highlands.
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Cut the meat into large pieces of about 4 cm.
Peel the garlic cloves and mash them to a purée.
Warm the oil in a casserole dish.
Brown the meat on all sides.
Pour in a little water and the garlic purée, and season.
After 30 to 40 minutes, when the pork is tender, work in the ravitoto and cook gently for another 10 minutes.
Taste, adjust the seasoning and serve with rice.
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