The Congo Cookbook

a collection of African recipes from all over Africa

Archives

 
Zanzibar Pilau

The word pilau comes from the Persian word pilav or pilaw, which is also the origin of pilaf, as in “rice pilaf”. The pilav rice cooking technique is found throughout the Middle East […]

Read more
 
Plantains in Coconut Milk

Zanzibar, off Africa’s eastern coast, is called “the spice island”, famous for its cloves and vanilla. Zanzibar is the center of the Swahili civilization. The […]

Read more
 
Wali wa Nazi (Coconut Rice)

Wali wa Nazi (wali, cooked rice; nazi, coconut) is a Swahili dish popular on Africa’s Indian ocean coast, particularly in Swahili areas like Zanzibar, Lamu, Malindi, and […]

Read more
 
Matoke

In Uganda, where Plantains are a staple crop, the plantain or plantain banana are known as Matoke (or Matooke). This dish, named for its primary ingredient, can be made with or without the meat. […]

Read more
 
Oysters Mombasa

Whether or not the Swahili and other African peoples of the Eastern African coast traditionally ate oysters does not seem to be well documented. There […]

Read more
 
Mchuzi wa Samaki (Fish Curry)

One of many traditional Swahili fish dishes from Zanzibar island. Samaki is the Swahili word for fish and mchuzi means curry (or gravy, sauce, soup). A fish curry from Zanzibar shouldn’t come as a […]

Read more
 
Kuku Paka

Kuku Paka, a chicken-coconut curry, is a Swahili dish from the coast of Eastern Africa. It is also sometimes called an Ismaili dish, and it […]

Read more