Kondré (Cameroonian Spiced Plantain and Meat Stew)
Cameroon
Senior Editor
Abuja, Nigeria ·
Cookies on African Food Network
We use essential cookies to make the site work. We would also like to set analytics cookies and advertising cookies, but only if you agree. You can choose each one separately. Read our cookie policy
Abuja, Nigeria ·
Kondré is green plantain and meat cooked slowly together in a blended spice paste until both are completely tender. It comes from the Bamileke of western Cameroon and is made for weddings, family gatherings and funerals. Three things make it, and the source sets them out clearly. The meat, goat traditionally, beef commonly, sometimes smoked pork, cooked long enough to fall off the bone, which means an hour and a half at minimum. The plantain, which must be green and unripe: ripe plantain collapses over three hours of cooking and, more importantly, tastes wrong. The source's line is worth quoting in spirit, if it is not green, it is not kondré. The third component is the spice list, and it is what makes this specifically Cameroonian rather than a generic stew. Pèbè (false nutmeg), djansang, rondelles, mesep and white Penja pepper are West and Central African spices with no straightforward substitutes, sold at African grocers. Penja pepper in particular is a protected Cameroonian product with a real reputation. Toasting the whole seeds before blending is marked optional in the method. It is worth doing, dry-toasting hard seeds releases their oils and deepens the whole dish. The source's ingredient list omits the plantain itself, which the method then requires.
Kondré is a spiced one-pot dish of green plantain and meat from the western region of Cameroon, associated particularly with the Bamileke people. It is cooked for weddings, family gatherings and funerals, and is built on West and Central African spices including pèbè, djansang and white Penja pepper.
Dietary tags are provided by contributors as a guide, not verified by AFN, and they depend on the products you buy. If you have a serious allergy, check every ingredient yourself.
Peel and rinse the plantains, cut them in half and leave them in cold water so they do not discolour.
Wash the meat and pat it dry.
Salt the meat and leave it for 10 minutes.
Warm the vegetable oil in a large pot and brown the meat.
bring a small pan to a high heat and dry-toast the pèbè, rondelles, cloves, djansang and white pepper until fragrant. Toasting hard seeds releases their oils.
Take the meat out and set it aside.
Blend the basil, leek, celery, garlic, ginger, tomato, cloves and toasted seeds together until smooth.
In the same pot, put the plantain, half the blended mixture and salt, and cover with water. Cover and cook for 45 minutes.
Put the meat back in with the remaining blended mixture, the palm oil and the bouquet garni. Cover and cook for a further 60 minutes, until both meat and plantain are tender.
Turn it occasionally so nothing catches, and adjust the salt.
Be the first to rate this recipe
Cooked it? Your rating helps the next person decide whether to try it.
No reviews on this one yet. If you have cooked it, yours would be the first.
