Recipe
🍽️ DINNER
Likhobe (Sorghum and Bean Grain Stew)
Sorghum, beans and cracked wheat simmered slowly into a thick, nutty mountain porridge, a hearty Basotho staple.
Basotho · easy · serves 6
prep 20 min · cook 120 min
~325 cal · 13g protein · 59g carbs · 6g fat · 10g fiber · 2g sugars · 1g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Likhobe is a slow-cooked grain and bean stew of the Basotho, the mountain people of Lesotho, made from , beans and cracked wheat simmered together until everything turns tender and thick. In a high, cold country with a short growing season it is exactly the kind of nourishing, keeping dish that sustains a household.
Seasoned simply with salt and a little oil, sometimes turmeric for colour, it is eaten warm as a filling main or a side. Lightly mashing some of the beans against the pot makes it creamy.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally vegetarian, vegan and 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 6
1 cup grain
1 cup dried beans, soaked
1 cup cracked wheat
1 onion, chopped
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp turmeric
to taste salt
about 8 cups water
Instructions
1
Rinse the sorghum and soaked beans, put them in a large pot with the onion and plenty of water, and bring to a boil.
2
Reduce to a low simmer and cook, stirring now and then, about an hour until they begin to soften, topping up water as needed.
✎ Chef’s note
Keep the pot topped up with water during the long simmer so the grains cook through without scorching.
3
Add the cracked wheat (or extra sorghum), the oil and turmeric and cook 45 minutes more until everything is tender and thick.
4
Season with salt, mash a little against the pot for creaminess, and serve warm.
Basotho mountain home cooking, Lesotho.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Maseru. The whole country lies above 1,400 metres, the only one in the world of which that is true, and the cooking answers the cold: stiff porridge, beans, slow-stewed meat and sour milk that keeps without refrigeration. Sorghum is grown as much for the traditional beer as for the pot.
🗺️
Lesotho. Trout is an unlikely highland speciality here, farmed in cold mountain reservoirs, and it sits oddly beside a diet otherwise built on maize, sorghum and mutton. Sorghum beer is brewed at home and shared from a common pot, and the cattle that graze the Maloti are wealth and status before they are meat.
🌍
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 Lesotho
Basotho Chicken Stew with PapaA highland chicken stew served with papa, the stiff maize porridge of Lesotho.
MakoenyaGolden Basotho fat cakes: crisp-edged deep-fried dough balls, soft and lightly sweet inside, sold hot from street stands for breakfast.
NyekoeA filling one-pot of sorghum and beans simmered slow with pumpkin and onion, the warming everyday lunch of the Lesotho highlands.
Browse all Lesotho recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Pot or saucepan.
Storing it: Thickens as it sits. Reheat with extra water or milk to loosen, and keep 2 to 3 days refrigerated.
Make it a Lesotho meal
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MorohoLunch
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Frequently asked questions
What is Likhobe (Sorghum and Bean Grain Stew)?
Sorghum, beans and cracked wheat simmered slowly into a thick, nutty mountain porridge, a hearty Basotho staple.
Where does Likhobe (Sorghum and Bean Grain Stew) come from?
Likhobe (Sorghum and Bean Grain Stew) is a Basotho dish from Maseru, Lesotho.
Can Likhobe (Sorghum and Bean Grain Stew) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Likhobe (Sorghum and Bean Grain Stew) 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 Likhobe (Sorghum and Bean Grain Stew) 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 Likhobe (Sorghum and Bean Grain Stew) take to make?
About 140 minutes total (20 minutes prep, 120 minutes cooking), serving 6.
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