Ndole is a popular traditional soup recipe in Cameroon that is made with the combination of spinach and bitter leaves as well as crayfish, shrimp, and beef. It is also a recipe for ceremony.
Ingredients
- ½ pound stew beef, diced
- Salt
- 2 tablespoons maggi (stock cube)
- 3 large onion, sliced
- ½ pound stockfish (optional)
- 2 cups shelled and peeled peanuts
- 4–5 cloves garlic
- ¾ cup ground crayfish
- 1 pound bitter leaves or spinach
- 2–3 cups oil
- ½ pound shrimp
Equipment
- Pot
- Bowl
- Stovetop
- Knife
- Cooking spoon
- Blender/grinder
- Saucepan
- Frying pan
Procedure
- Season the beef in a big pot with salt, maggi, and one-third of the onions, then boil until the meat is soft.
- In the meantime, boil the stockfish with salt and water, then add it to the cooked beef. From the meat and stockfish you should get roughly 3 cups. Freeze or reserve the remainder.
- In a saucepan, boil the peanuts for around 10 minutes. Let it cool before pulsing or mixing it in a blender. Add to the meat and stockfish mixture.
- Grind half the remaining onion and garlic to a paste, then stir into the meat and peanut mixture.
- Add the crayfish, then boil it for 10 minutes, stirring often to avoid burning. Season with salt and maggi to taste. Later, you might need to add more.
- Add spinach or bitter leaves to the soup. Stir and continue to simmer for few minutes.
- Heat the oil in a frying pan while the ndole is simmering. Add the shrimp and stir continuously until they start to turn pink. Add all the remaining onions and stir again for a few more minutes.
- Add the shrimp and onion mixture to the soup pot, and stir continuously for about 2 minutes
- Serve hot.