Crayfish
Also called: dried crayfish, ground crayfish, crevettes séchées, dried shrimp
In Cameroon, what people call crayfish (écrevisses in French) are small shrimp that have been dried and smoked. Markets sell them whole or ground. They smell strongly of smoke and taste salty and of the sea. Ground and stirred into a sauce, they give the savoury base that so many Cameroonian dishes depend on.
Few ingredients turn up in more of the country's cooking. Lumo has eleven recipes that use it, from almost every region: ndolé from the Littoral; eru, ekwang, Afang soup and egusi pudding from the South-West; banane malaxée from the West; okok salé from the South; and from the Centre, peanut sauce, okra sauce, pistachio (egusi) sauce and sautéed greens (nzom). It usually goes in ground, partway through cooking, along with the other seasonings.
Pick crayfish that are dry and crisp, with a clean smoky smell and no hint of damp or mustiness. Sort through them and remove any grit or small stones before grinding. Grind as you need it and keep it in a sealed jar, somewhere dry; for long storage, use the fridge or freezer. Abroad, African grocery stores carry it whole or ground. Dried shrimp from an Asian grocery is a fair substitute, though it lacks the smoke and is often saltier, so cut back on the salt in the recipe.
Recipes with this ingredient
- Afang Soup Sud-Ouest · 1 hr 30 min
A rich Calabar-style soup: pounded afang (okazi) leaves and waterleaf cooked with goat meat, dried fish, periwinkle and palm oil.
- Banane Malaxée Ouest · 1 hr
A Western Cameroon green-plantain stew with peanuts: plantains cooked in a blended peanut and country-spice sauce with smoked fish and red palm oil.
- Egusi Pudding Sud-Ouest · 1 hr 25 min
A steamed Cameroonian delicacy: ground melon seeds blended with stock and spices, wrapped in plantain leaves and steamed into a firm pudding.
- Egusi soup Centre · 1 hr
An old-style egusi (pistache) sauce cooked with tomato: ground melon seeds simmered into a thick, savoury sauce.
- Ekwang Sud-Ouest · 2 hr 30 min
A South-West speciality: grated cocoyam wrapped in tender cocoyam leaves and slow-cooked with smoked fish, crayfish and red palm oil.
- Eru Sud-Ouest · 1 hr
A South-West classic: finely shredded eru (okazi) and waterleaf greens stewed with beef, cow skin, smoked fish and crayfish in plenty of red palm oil.
- Fried vegetables (Nzom) Centre · 35 min
A quick, colourful Cameroonian sautéed-greens dish: zom (nzom) leaves blanched to stay bright, then tossed with onion, tomato, garlic and crayfish.
- Groundnut Sauce (Maffé) Centre · 45 min
A smooth Cameroonian peanut sauce: tomato and peanut paste simmered with chicken or meat, seasoned with country spices.
- Ndolé Littoral · 1 hr 30 min
Cameroon's national dish: washed bitterleaf simmered with a rich ground-peanut paste, beef, smoked fish and crayfish.
- Okok Salé Sud · 2 hr
The savoury southern Cameroon (Beti/Bulu) version: finely pounded okok leaves simmered in palm-nut juice with beef, smoked fish and crayfish.
- Okra Beef Sauce Centre · 45 min
A glossy okra sauce with tender beef, cow skin, crayfish and chili. Quick, light and best eaten with a swallow.