~560 cal · 60g protein · 10g carbs · 30g fat (estimated, per serving)
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Chicken pieces in a thick orange palm-nut sauce
🇬🇦 Libreville
Poulet nyembwe is the national dish of Gabon, built on the thick orange pulp pressed from palm nuts (nyembwe or moambe). The chicken is browned, then simmered slowly in the earthy, faintly tangy palm sauce until tender, its richness cut by chili and served with rice or plantain in Libreville and beyond.
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🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
Ingredients
Serves 6 —
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3 lb chicken pieces
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2 cups palm-nut pulp (moambe/nyembwe sauce)
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1 onion
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4 cloves garlic
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2 tomato
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1 scotch bonnet
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1 bay leaf
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1 bunch greens (spinach), to serve
Instructions
1
Brown the chicken (or mushrooms and tofu) with the onion and garlic in a heavy pot.
2
Add the chopped tomato and cook until it breaks down.
3
Stir in the palm-nut pulp with a cup of water, the whole scotch bonnet, and the bay leaf.
4
Simmer gently 40 minutes until the sauce is thick, glossy, and the chicken is tender.
5
Wilt in the greens at the end and serve with rice or plantain.
Libreville tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers — know your destination
📍
Libreville. A rainforest capital devoted to palm-nut chicken.
🗺️
Gabon. Equatorial rainforest country of palm-nut sauces.
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Africa. Fifty-four countries of tagines, stews, and fire-kissed grills.
The story behind this dish is up top — worth a read while the pot works.
👩🍳
Richard Moore & Kelsey Tucker
Recipes cooked, tested, and researched by the creators of Spin the Globe. How we build our recipes →
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