Bitterleaf
Also called: bitter leaf, ndolé, feuilles de ndolé, onugbu, ewuro, Vernonia amygdalina
Bitterleaf comes from a shrub, Vernonia amygdalina. Raw, the leaves are very bitter. Washed and cooked, they keep a light bitterness, and that is the whole point. This is the leaf that defines ndolé, the best known dish of the Littoral region, cooked with peanuts, crayfish and meat or shrimp.
Lumo has one recipe that uses it: ndolé, from the Littoral. It is usually served with miondo, bobolo or ripe plantain.
Preparing bitterleaf is mostly about taming the bitterness. Boil the leaves, then squeeze and wash them in plenty of water several times, rubbing them between your hands, until the taste is where you want it. Taste after each rinse. In the markets of Yaoundé and Douala, ndolé is often sold already washed and pressed into balls, which spares you the work. Washed leaves keep a few days in the fridge and freeze well. Abroad, African grocery stores sell bitterleaf frozen and pre-washed, or dried; soak the dried kind in warm water before washing it. Don't confuse it with waterleaf, a different plant that is soft and not bitter. There is no real substitute. A spinach and peanut stew can be good, but it is not ndolé.
Recipes with this ingredient
- Ndolé Littoral · 1 hr 30 min
Cameroon's national dish: washed bitterleaf simmered with a rich ground-peanut paste, beef, smoked fish and crayfish.