🥔 SIDE
Ombidi (Namibian Wild Spinach)
Wild spinach softened with onion, garlic and tomato into a savoury green relish, the everyday partner to oshifima in northern Namibia.
Namibian · easy · serves 4
prep 15 min · cook 20 min
~140 cal · 6g protein · 16g carbs · 7g fat · 5g fiber · 5g sugars · 1g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Ombidi, also called omboga and known by other names across Namibia, is wild spinach, and one of the most loved dishes of the north. The leaves grow on their own in the fields during the rains, from about November to March, and families pick them in armfuls.
Because the season is short, much of the harvest is dried. The leaves are pressed into round cakes and dried, and these cakes, called ekaka, keep for the months ahead. Before cooking, a piece of ekaka is soaked in water and then boiled until tender.
Traditionally the greens were cooked for a long time in a three-legged iron pot over a wood fire, with onion, tomato, salt and a little fat added at the end. A quicker version with onion, garlic and tomato is just as common today. However it is cooked, ombidi goes to the table as the relish for oshifima, the stiff mahangu porridge, with meat or beans alongside.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally vegetarian, vegan and 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
- 600 g (about 1 large bunch) wild spinach or amaranth leaves, or spinach, or 150 g dried ombidi (ekaka)
- 2 tbsp sunflower oil
- 2 medium onions, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 2 medium ripe tomatoes, chopped, or 6 tbsp chopped canned tomatoes
- 5 tbsp water
- to taste salt and black pepper
- 1 green chili, chopped, optional
Instructions
- 1Wash the greens well, strip off any tough stalks and chop the leaves roughly.✎ Chef’s noteIf you are using dried ekaka, soak it in cold water for 15 minutes, drain, then boil it in fresh water for about 20 minutes until tender and drain again before carrying on.
- 2Heat the oil in a wide pot over medium heat and fry the onions for 3 minutes, until soft. Add the garlic and fry for 1 minute more.
- 3Add the tomatoes and 3 tbsp of the water and simmer for 5 minutes, until the tomatoes break down into a sauce.
- 4Add the greens, cover and simmer for 5 minutes, until they have wilted right down.
- 5Stir in the rest of the water and the chili if using, cover and simmer for 5 minutes more, until the leaves are completely soft.
- 6Season with salt and pepper, cook uncovered for 1 minute and serve hot with oshifima, pap or rice.
Oshiwambo home cooking, northern Namibia.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Windhoek. Namibia is mostly desert and the cooking reflects both what survives that and who arrived. Cattle and game are dried into biltong, maize is cooked into pap, and the German colonial period left bread, sausage and beer still brewed to a purity law nobody here is obliged to follow.
🗺️
Namibia. Kapana is Namibia's most distinctive street food and it happens at market stalls, above all in Katutura in Windhoek: beef cut small, grilled fast on open-fire plates, and dipped straight from the grill into a bowl of dry spice mix, bought by the handful while standing. It is quick, cheap and eaten in a crowd.
🌍
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 Namibia
OshikwiilaNamibian mahangu pancakes: golden, slightly crisp pearl-millet flatcakes griddled fresh, the fuel that carries Owambo schoolchildren through the morning.
Vetkoek with MinceGolden fried dough buns split and stuffed with savory curried beef mince, a favorite Namibian street lunch.
OshifimaNamibia's stiff pearl-millet porridge, beaten smooth, shaped into a mound, and eaten by hand with stews, greens, or soured milk.
Browse all Namibia recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Pot or saucepan.
Storing it: Stews and braises keep 3 to 4 days refrigerated and often taste better the next day. Reheat gently, adding a splash of water if it has thickened.
Make it a Namibia meal
OshikunduDrink
Sweet Mahangu PorridgeDessert
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Cuisine
Diet
Frequently asked questions
What is Ombidi (Namibian Wild Spinach)?
Wild spinach softened with onion, garlic and tomato into a savoury green relish, the everyday partner to oshifima in northern Namibia.
Where does Ombidi (Namibian Wild Spinach) come from?
Ombidi (Namibian Wild Spinach) is a Namibian dish from Windhoek, Namibia.
Can Ombidi (Namibian Wild Spinach) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Ombidi (Namibian Wild Spinach) recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions. Treat the substitutions as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Ombidi (Namibian Wild Spinach) 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 still count coconut as a tree nut to be cautious, although the FDA stopped listing it as one in 2025), 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 Ombidi (Namibian Wild Spinach) take to make?
About 35 minutes total (15 minutes prep, 20 minutes cooking), serving 4.
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