Ingredients
Greens
- 1 kggreen leaves: cassava leaf, cowpea leaf, pumpkin leaf or amaranth
- water
Sauce
- 300 ggroundnut paste
- 2onions, chopped
- 3tomatoes, chopped
- 2 clovesgarlic
- 1green chilli
- 3 tbspoil
- 1stock cube
- salt
Optional
- 200 gdried fish or smoked meat
To serve
- kisra
- asida
- boiled cassava
Directions
- Strip the leaves from their stalks, wash them in several changes of water, and discard any tough stems.
- Pound the leaves in a large wooden mortar until they break down into a coarse dark green mass. If the leaves are cassava, they must be pounded and then boiled thoroughly for at least 40 minutes.
- Boil the pounded leaves in water for 30 to 40 minutes, until soft and no longer smelling raw. Meanwhile loosen the groundnut paste with a ladleful of hot water until it is smooth and pourable.
- Fry the onions in the oil until golden, add the garlic, tomatoes and chilli, and cook down for 10 minutes. Stir the loosened groundnut paste into the pot and cook it 5 minutes.
- Add the boiled greens with their liquid, and the dried fish if using, and simmer for a further 20 minutes.
- Stir it regularly. It is ready when the oil rises and separates at the surface, which is the sign across West and Central African cooking that a groundnut sauce is done.
- Season and serve with kisra, asida or boiled cassava.
Technique
- Which leaf is used depends entirely on the season and what is growing.
- It should be thick enough to sit on the plate rather than run, and the groundnut is what thickens it.
- Dried or smoked fish adds depth and is common but not universal.
Substitutions
- Smooth unsweetened peanut butter in place of groundnut paste.
- Spinach or chard, which need only brief cooking and carry no cyanide concern.
Variations
- With smoked meat rather than fish.
- With more chilli, as it is made further south.
- Meatless, which is the everyday version.
History
A dish of Equatoria’s forest and farming belt, where cassava and pumpkin leaves are cooked down with groundnut in the Central African manner.
Frequently asked questions
What is Kombo?
Kombo is a soup & stew from South Sudan: pounded green leaves simmered with groundnut paste in the south-west. A dish of Equatoria’s forest and farming belt, where cassava and pumpkin leaves are cooked down with groundnut in the Central African manner.
How long does Kombo take to make?
Kombo takes 30 min of preparation and 1 hr of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Kombo?
Yes, within limits. Smooth unsweetened peanut butter in place of groundnut paste. Spinach or chard, which need only brief cooking and carry no cyanide concern.
What is the most important thing to get right in Kombo?
Pound the leaves in a large wooden mortar until they break down into a coarse dark green mass. If the leaves are cassava, they must be pounded and then boiled thoroughly for at least 40 minutes.
