Recipe
🥙 LUNCH
Poisson Fumé aux Bananes Plantains
Smoked fish simmered in a tomato, onion and chili sauce, served over golden fried ripe plantains, an easy Gabonese plate.
Gabonese · easy · serves 4
prep 15 min · cook 25 min
~494 cal · 28g protein · 51g carbs · 21g fat · 5g fiber · 24g sugars · 3g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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This simple Gabonese plate pairs two of the country's everyday staples: smoked fish and ripe . The fish, smoked to preserve it in the humid forest climate, is simmered in a quick sauce of tomato, onion, garlic and chili, while sweet ripe are fried golden alongside.
Smoking is central to Central African cooking, giving fish a deep, savoury flavour that carries a light tomato sauce, and is the daily starch, eaten green and starchy or, as here, ripe and sweet. It is home food, fast and unfussy, the kind of meal put together from what the market and the smokehouse offer.
The sweet against the smoky, savoury fish are the whole point, an easy everyday balance.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally gluten-, dairy-, nut-, egg- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 4
1 lb smoked fish, boned and flaked
3 ripe
3 tomatoes, chopped
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 chili, chopped
1/4 cup neutral or red
to taste salt
Instructions
1
Soak the smoked fish in warm water for 15 minutes, then drain and pick out any bones.
2
Peel and slice the ripe plantains and fry them in oil until golden on both sides, then drain and set aside.
✎ Chef’s note
Use plantains with well-blackened skins. Only fully ripe ones fry up sweet and soft.
3
In the same pan soften the onion, garlic and chili, then add the tomatoes and cook to a sauce, about 8 minutes.
4
Fold in the flaked smoked fish (or mushrooms) and simmer 10 minutes so it seasons the sauce.
5
Season with salt and serve the fish sauce over or alongside the fried plantains.
Libreville home cooking.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Libreville. Libreville is a rainforest capital devoted to nyembwe, chicken simmered in the thick orange pulp of the palm nut. Gabonese cooking uses cassava sticks, plantain, smoked river fish, and the wild leaves and nuts of the forest around it.
🗺️
Gabon. Almost nine tenths of Gabon is forest, and rivers rather than roads have long been the way through it, which shapes the cooking towards river fish, smoked and grilled, and towards leaves and roots close to hand. Bushmeat is a real part of that history and a legally and ecologically fraught one, which is worth stating rather than celebrating.
🌍
Africa. Africa's fifty-four nations hold cuisines as different as Morocco's slow-cooked tagines and South Africa's open-fire braai, yet shared threads run through them: ancient grains like millet, sorghum, and teff; stews thickened with groundnut, okra, or palm; and fiery condiments from Tunisian harissa to Ethiopian berbere. Staple starches, fufu, injera, ugali, couscous, anchor communal meals often eaten by hand from a shared dish, where hospitality is a point of honor.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Gabon
Poulet NyembweGabon's national dish: chicken simmered in a rich, tangy sauce of palm-nut pulp with chili and greens.
Bouillie de BananeA smooth Gabonese plantain porridge, gently sweet and spiced, to start a rainforest morning.
Poisson BraiséWhole fish marinated and grilled over coals, served with fried plantain and a fresh tomato-onion relish, Libreville's classic lunch.
Browse all Gabon recipes →
Good to know
Storing it: Fried food is best eaten fresh while crisp. Re-crisp leftovers in a hot oven or air fryer; the microwave makes them soft.
Make it a Gabon meal
Bananes au Four Croustillantes (Crisp Baked Bananas)Dessert
Poisson à l'OdikaDinner
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Frequently asked questions
What is Poisson Fumé aux Bananes Plantains?
Smoked fish simmered in a tomato, onion and chili sauce, served over golden fried ripe plantains, an easy Gabonese plate.
Where does Poisson Fumé aux Bananes Plantains come from?
Poisson Fumé aux Bananes Plantains is a Gabonese dish from Libreville, Gabon.
Can Poisson Fumé aux Bananes Plantains be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Poisson Fumé aux Bananes Plantains recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Poisson Fumé aux Bananes Plantains safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Poisson Fumé aux Bananes Plantains take to make?
About 40 minutes total (15 minutes prep, 25 minutes cooking), serving 4.
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