Baku Kitchen! An independent reference of traditional food

Uganda

Ask what Uganda eats and the answer starts with this: steamed matooke with groundnut sauce defines the table; chapati street snacks, grasshopper delicacies and banana brews abound. Look for Matooke (green bananas steamed in leaves and mashed, served with groundnut sauce), Rolex (chapati rolled around fried eggs, tomato and cabbage) and Luwombo (chicken, beef or groundnuts steamed in banana leaves; royal Buganda dish). East African Highland bananas, steamed in their own leaves, are the Buganda staple; Uganda eats more banana per person than any other country. This atlas has 30 Uganda dishes catalogued below, from everyday cooking to food kept for festivals and special occasions.

30 dishes.

BooBooCowpea leaves pounded and simmered with sesame paste and ash saltBusheraBusheralightly sour fermented millet and sorghum drinkChapatiChapatiLayered wheat flatbread fried in oil and eaten with beans or teaDoodoDoodoAmaranth leaves stewed with onion, tomato and groundnut pasteEnswaEnswaFlying termites caught at the first rains, fried crisp and saltedEshabweEshabwewhipped ghee sauce from western Uganda, served at feastsFirindaFirindaBeans boiled soft, peeled and mashed smooth with onion and gheeGonjaGonjaSweet plantains roasted whole over charcoal at roadside stallsGroundnut sauceGroundnut saucesmooth peanut sauce poured over matooke and sweet potatoesKabalagalaKabalagalaSmall pancakes of ripe sweet banana and cassava flour, fried in oilKaloKaloDark stiff millet bread kneaded hot and torn to scoop stewKatogoKatogoone-pot matooke with beans, offal or beef, morning favoriteKikomandoKikomandoChapati sliced into ribbons and tossed with fried beans, eaten from paperKweteKweteCloudy home-brewed beer of fermented maize and millet, drunk freshLuwomboLuwombochicken, beef or groundnuts steamed in banana leaves; royal Buganda dishMalakwangMalakwangSour hibiscus leaves cooked with groundnut paste, served with sweet potatoMalewaMalewasmoked bamboo shoots stewed in groundnut sauce, Bugisu specialtyMalwaMalwaWarm millet beer shared from one pot through long reed strawsMandaziMandazilightly sweet cardamom fried doughnut squares, chai companionMatookeMatookegreen bananas steamed in leaves and mashed, served with groundnut sauceMuchomoMuchomocharcoal-grilled meat skewers sold at roadside standsMukeneMukeneTiny sun-dried Lake Victoria silverfish fried with tomato and onionNseneneNseneneseasonal grasshoppers pan-fried with onion and chili, prized delicacyOdiiOdiiRoasted sesame ground to a thick dark paste, stirred into greensPoshoPoshostiff white maize porridge accompanying beans and stewsRolexRolexchapati rolled around fried eggs, tomato and cabbageSim sim ballsSim sim ballsSesame seeds bound with caramelised sugar into hard sweet barsTontoTontoCloudy banana beer fermented in a wooden trough with sorghum flourUgandan coffeeUgandan coffeeRobusta from the Lake Victoria basin, heavy-bodied and chocolateyWaragiWaragibanana-based distilled gin, Uganda's national spirit

  • Luwombo

    Chicken, beef or groundnuts steamed in banana leaves; royal Buganda dish. Ready in 40 min prep and 2 hr 30…

  • Boo

    Cowpea leaves pounded and simmered with sesame paste and ash salt. Ready in 25 min prep and 40 min cooking.…

  • Bushera

    Lightly sour fermented millet and sorghum drink. Ready in 20 min prep and 20 min cooking. 2 litres. A drink…

  • Chapati

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

  • Doodo

    Amaranth leaves stewed with onion, tomato and groundnut paste. Ready in 20 min prep and 25 min cooking. 4 servings.…

  • Enswa

    Flying termites caught at the first rains, fried crisp and salted. Ready in 20 minutes prep and 15 minutes cooking.…

  • Eshabwe

    Whipped ghee sauce from western Uganda, served at feasts. 30 min to prepare. 6 servings. A sauce & condiment recipe…

  • Firinda

    Beans boiled soft, peeled and mashed smooth with onion and ghee. Ready in 1 hr prep and 2 hr cooking.…

  • Gonja

    Sweet plantains roasted whole over charcoal at roadside stalls. Ready in 5 min prep and 25 min cooking. 4 servings.…

  • Groundnut sauce

    Smooth peanut sauce poured over matooke and sweet potatoes. Ready in 20 minutes prep and 45 minutes cooking. Serves 6.…