Njangsa
Also called: njansang, njangsang, njansa, akpi, Ricinodendron heudelotii
Njangsa is the small seed of a West and Central African forest tree, Ricinodendron heudelotii. Dried, the seeds are reddish brown and about the size of a chickpea. Ground, they taste nutty, earthy and faintly bitter, with a smell you can pick out in a sauce straight away. Cooks use a little at a time, to thicken and to perfume.
In Cameroon, njangsa goes into many sauces and broths. Lumo has two recipes that use it: bouillon de patte (cow foot broth) from the Centre region, and mbongo tchobi, the black sauce of the Littoral. It is added ground, usually with the other spices, to give the sauce body.
Buy seeds that are fully dry, free of mould and without a rancid smell. Toasting them briefly in a dry pan before grinding brings out the aroma. Njangsa is oily, so once ground it goes stale faster. Grind small batches, keep the powder in a sealed jar in the fridge, and store whole seeds somewhere cool and dry. Abroad, African grocery stores sell it whole or ground, sometimes labelled njansang or akpi. There is no true substitute. Without it the sauce is still fine, but it loses that particular taste.
Recipes with this ingredient
- Beef Trotter Broth Centre · 3 hr 20 min
A slow-simmered Cameroonian broth: beef trotters cooked low and long with country spices into a thick, gelatinous, deeply savoury soup.
- Mbongo Tchobi Littoral · 1 hr 10 min
The Bassa black sauce: fish simmered in a dark, smoky sauce of burnt spices, njansang and country pepper.