African nutmeg (pèbè)
Also called: Monodora myristica, calabash nutmeg, ehuru, pèbé, muscade de calebasse
Pèbè is the seed of a Central and West African tree, Monodora myristica. Each seed, about the size of a large coffee bean, sits in a thin, hard shell. Toasted and ground, it gives off a warm smell close to nutmeg, rounder and slightly resinous. The likeness stops at the flavour: it comes from a different plant.
Cameroonian cooks use pèbè to season broths and spiced sauces. Lumo has four recipes that use it: cow foot broth from the Centre, ekwang from the South-West, pork kondrè from the West and mbongo tchobi from the Littoral. To prepare it, toast the seeds in a dry pan for a few minutes, crack off the shell, then crush or grind the kernel. Toast and grind it just before cooking, because the aroma fades quickly once ground. Buy whole seeds that are dry and free of mould, and keep them in a sealed jar away from damp.
Abroad, African grocery shops carry it, often labelled with its Igbo name, ehuru, or as calabash nutmeg. If you cannot find it, a little freshly grated nutmeg points in the same direction but is sharper, so use less than the recipe asks for in pèbè.
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.
- 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.
- Kondrè with pig meat Ouest · 2 hr 25 min
A warming Western-Highlands stew: green plantains slow-cooked with pork and a generous blend of country spices.
- 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.