Ingredients
The seeds
- 2 kgbush mango fruit
- Irvingia gabonensis
- or 500 g dried kernels
- already extracted
To process
- a mortar and pestle
- or a grinder
- banana leaves, to line
- a warm dry place
To use, per pot
- 3 tablespoonsgrated ndo’o
- into a stew
Sold as
- hard pressed blocks
- sold by weight at market
- grated as needed
Directions
- Keep them completely dry throughout. Discard any block that smells musty. Cut the flesh away from the stone. Crack the hard inner stone open.
- Take the whole kernel out of it. It takes practice not to crush the kernel. Spread the kernels out in the sun. Dry them out for several days.
- Pound the dried kernels in a mortar. This takes real time and force. Press the paste firmly into moulds. Press it hard to drive out air. Press it as firmly as you can. Line the moulds with banana leaf.
- Set the blocks somewhere warm and dry. Let them dry for several days. Turn them so all sides dry evenly. They should go hard right through.
- Wrap them in leaf or in paper. Keep them somewhere dry and airy. They keep for months that way.
- Grate the block on a fine grater. Start with less and then add more. Adding it to a stew takes care. Stir it into a smooth loose paste. Dry gratings tipped in sit in lumps.
- Let the stew simmer ten minutes after. Ten minutes is about right for it. Grate only as much as you need.
Technique
- Bush mango is not related to the mango at all — the name describes the look of the fruit rather than its family. The flesh is eaten fresh in season, but it is the seed inside that becomes ndo’o. The kernel is rich in a gum that releases mucilage into hot liquid, thickening a stew and giving it a drawing quality on the spoon that is valued the way okra’s is, rather than being a fault.
- The paste is pressed into blocks and dried because loose ground kernel is high in fat and goes rancid quickly, where a hard dried block keeps for months. That is the whole point of the form — so grate only what you need, keep the blocks completely dry, and discard any that smells musty or sharp.
- Loosen grated ndo’o with a little hot broth into a smooth paste before it goes into the pot, since dry gratings tipped in sit in lumps that never disperse. Then simmer ten minutes, during which the thickening develops and any raw taste goes.
Substitutions
- Dried kernels already extracted save the gathering, cracking and drying, and are sold that way.
- A grinder does the pounding faster than a mortar; both give a usable paste.
Variations
- It is called ndo’o in Cameroon and ogbono in Nigeria — the same seed under both names.
- Press the paste hard into leaf-lined moulds to drive out air, since air pockets let mould grow inside the block.
- Three tablespoons thickens a family pot and it thickens strongly, so start with less and add more.
History
Seeds of Irvingia gabonensis are dried, pounded and moulded into cakes; the trade in ndo’o links Cameroonian forest villages to markets across Central Africa.
Frequently asked questions
What is Ndo’o?
Ndo’o is a sauce & condiment from Cameroon: pressed bush-mango seed blocks grated into stews to thicken them. Seeds of Irvingia gabonensis are dried, pounded and moulded into cakes; the trade in ndo’o links Cameroonian forest villages to markets across Central Africa.
How long does Ndo’o take to make?
Ndo’o takes 1 hour plus drying of preparation and no cooking at all. The recipe makes about 8 blocks. It is rated medium to make.
What can I substitute in Ndo’o?
Yes, within limits. Dried kernels already extracted save the gathering, cracking and drying, and are sold that way. A grinder does the pounding faster than a mortar; both give a usable paste.
What is the most important thing to get right in Ndo’o?
Take the whole kernel out of it. It takes practice not to crush the kernel. Spread the kernels out in the sun. Dry them out for several days.
