Baku Kitchen! An independent reference of traditional food

DR Congo

DR Congo’s food is built around fufu and pondu anchor meals; moambe, leaf-wrapped liboke and Kinshasa kamundele skewers feed the capital. Look for Moambe chicken (chicken stewed in palm-cream moambe sauce with rice and pondu), Pondu (cassava-leaf stew with palm oil and fish or meat; ubiquitous) and Liboke (fish or meat in chili-spiced banana-leaf parcels, grilled or steamed). Chicken cooked in pulp pressed from oil palm fruit, called mwambe in Lingala and treated as the national dish of the Congo. This atlas has 36 DR Congo dishes catalogued below, from everyday cooking to food kept for festivals and special occasions.

36 dishes.

BitekutekuBitekutekuSautéed amaranth greens with tomato and onionBukariBukariStiff maize-meal mash of the east, eaten by hand with sombe and beansChapatiChapatiLayered wheat flatbread fried in oil and eaten with beans or teaChikwangaChikwangaFermented cassava bread steamed in leaves, travel-friendlyDongo-dongoDongo-dongoSilky okra sauce with fishFromage de MasisiFromage de MasisiFirm Gouda-style cow's milk cheese from the North Kivu highlandsFufuFufuStiff cassava-corn flour swallow rolled to scoop stewsFumbwaFumbwaWild fumbwa leaves in peanut-palm sauce with smoked fishKamundeleKamundeleGoat or beef skewers grilled with onion and chili, eaten with chikwangaKasiksiKasiksiCloudy banana beer of the eastern hills, fermented with sorghum flourKikandaKikandaBambara groundnuts and peanuts ground, wrapped in leaves and steamed into a cakeKivu coffeeKivu coffeeBright high-altitude arabica grown on the volcanic hills above Lake KivuLibokeLibokeFish or meat in chili-spiced banana-leaf parcels, grilled or steamedLitumaLitumaRipe plantain mashed and rolled into balls, eaten with meat or fish sauceLotokoLotokoRaw clear spirit distilled from fermented maize or cassava in oil-drum stillsMadesuMadesuBeans stewed in palm oil with onions, served over riceMakayabuMakayabuSalted cod fried or stewed with peppers and onionMakembaMakembaPlantains boiled or fried beside every stewMatembeleMatembeleSweet potato leaves stewed with onion and palm oilMbikaMbikaGround squash-seed patties with fish, steamed in leavesMbinzoMbinzoDried caterpillars fried with chili and onion, protein-rich delicacyMikateMikatePuffy fried dough balls sold from morning stallsMoambe chickenMoambe chickenChicken stewed in palm-cream moambe sauce with rice and ponduMunkoyoMunkoyoLightly fermented maize drink soured with sweet munkoyo rootsNdakalaNdakalaTiny lake sardines sun-dried whole and fried or stirred into saucesNgai ngaiNgai ngaiSour hibiscus-leaf sauce simmered with smoked fishNtabaNtabaCharcoal-grilled goat, Kinshasa nightlife staplePalm grubsPalm grubsFat palm weevil larvae grilled on skewers until crisp and butteryPalm winePalm wineSweet-then-sour sap tapped from the oil palm, drunk the day it runsPili piliPili piliCrushed hot chili paste set on the table beside every dishPonduPonduCassava-leaf stew with palm oil and fish or meat; ubiquitousSafouSafouViolet African plum roasted until buttery, eaten with roast maizeSambusaSambusaDeep-fried triangle of pastry stuffed with spiced beef or beansSombeSombePounded cassava leaves cooked long with palm oil, groundnut and smoked fishTangawisiTangawisiPungent ginger juice, prized as medicinalVitumbuaVitumbuaSmall fried cakes of rice flour and coconut milk, crisp edged and spongy inside

  • Lotoko

    Raw clear spirit distilled from fermented maize or cassava in oil-drum stills. Ready in 1 hr prep and 5 days…

  • Pondu

    Cassava-leaf stew with palm oil and fish or meat; ubiquitous. Ready in 20 min prep and 1 hr 45 min…

  • Bitekuteku

    Sautéed amaranth greens with tomato and onion. Ready in 20 minutes prep and 20 minutes cooking. Serves 4. A salad…

  • Bukari

    Stiff maize-meal mash of the east, eaten by hand with sombe and beans. Ready in 5 min prep and 25…

  • Chapati

    Layered wheat flatbread fried in oil and eaten with beans or tea. Ready in 20 min prep and 25 min…

  • Chikwanga

    Fermented cassava bread steamed in leaves, travel-friendly. Ready in 1 hour prep and 2 hours cooking. About 8 loaves. A…

  • Dongo-dongo

    Silky okra sauce with fish. Ready in 20 minutes prep and 45 minutes cooking. Serves 6. A soup & stew…

  • Fromage de Masisi

    Firm Gouda-style cow’s milk cheese from the North Kivu highlands. A cheese & dairy recipe from DR Congo.

  • Fumbwa

    Wild fumbwa leaves in peanut-palm sauce with smoked fish. Ready in 40 minutes prep and 1 hour cooking. Serves 6.…

  • Kamundele

    Goat or beef skewers grilled with onion and chili, eaten with chikwanga. Ready in 30 minutes prep and 20 minutes…