~293 cal · 6g protein · 38g carbs · 14g fat (estimated, per serving)
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Dark stewed cassava and spinach leaves in a shallow pot
🇷🇼 Kigali
Isombe is everyday nourishment across the hills of Rwanda: cassava leaves pounded fine, then coaxed soft over a long, low simmer with a little peanut for body. It is comfort food and communal food at once, ladled beside rice or plantain at family tables from Kigali to the countryside.
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Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
Ingredients
Serves 6 —
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1 lb cassava leaves (or frozen), finely chopped
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8 oz spinach, chopped
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1/3 cup peanut butter
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1 small + 1 eggplant and leek, diced
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1 onion
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3 cloves garlic
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3 tbsp palm or vegetable oil
Instructions
1
Simmer the cassava leaves in water for 30 minutes until they lose their raw edge.
2
Add the eggplant, leek, onion, and garlic and cook 15 minutes until soft.
3
Stir the peanut butter (or sunbutter) into a little of the hot liquid, then fold it through the greens.
4
Add the spinach and oil and simmer gently 15 more minutes until thick and glossy.
5
Season and serve with rice, plantain, or cassava.
Kigali home cooking.
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🌏 While it simmers — know your destination
📍
Kigali. Hilltop capital of gentle greens and mashed staples.
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Rwanda. Land of a thousand hills and gentle, green home cooking.
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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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