Ghanaian · main
Kontomire Stew (Palava Sauce)
Kontomire Stew (Palava Sauce) reads salinity 5.2, umami 4.6 and richness 4.1 on Palate's 0–10 flavor X-ray — a Ghanaian main, about 56 min. Measured from the recipe itself: ingredients and technique.
The flavor X-ray — six axes, 0–10
- Umami & Savory — 6.1 / 10
- Sweet & Fruity — 3.0 / 10
- Sour & Bright — 2.0 / 10
- Bitter & Earthy — 3.7 / 10
- Rich & Fat — 5.2 / 10
- Aromatic & Spice — 4.4 / 10
The measured notes (of 18)
Salinity 5.2 · Umami 4.6 · Richness 4.1 · Heat 4.0 · Nutty 3.6 · Marine & Briny 3.6 · Smoke 3.3 · Allium 2.9 · Fruity 2.4 · Earthy 2.0 · Sweetness 1.9 · Sourness 1.9 · Herbaceous 1.0 · Funk & Ferment 1.0 · Floral 1.0 · Bitterness 1.0
What's in it (12)
- cocoyam leaves — 500 g
- egusi — 150 g
- unrefined red palm oil — 138 g
- onion — 180 g
- tomatoes — 300 g
- scotch bonnet chillies — 200 g
- smoked mackerel — 200 g
- koobi — 100 g
- crayfish — 15 g
- water — 350 g
- salt — 7 g
- boiled yams — 600 g
Time & effort: about 56 min · effort: involved
Nutrition (per 100 g, engine-estimated): 5.1 kcal, 0.2 g protein, 0.1 g fat, 0.9 g carbs
Dietary: Contains meat · Contains seafood — engine-derived; double-check anything allergy-critical.
How it's cooked (7 steps)
- Wash the cocoyam leaves in several changes of water. Blanch them in boiling water 5 minutes, drain, press out as much water as you can and chop coarsely. Raw cocoyam leaf is irritant to the mouth and throat, so the blanch is not optional and no other green stands in for it here.
- Warm the red palm oil in a wide pan over medium heat, add the onion and cook 5 to 6 minutes until soft.
- Add the tomatoes and chilli and cook 10 to 12 minutes, until the sauce is thick and the oil separates.
- Stir the egusi with 100 ml of the water into a thick paste, spoon it over the sauce in blobs and leave it completely undisturbed 5 minutes so it sets into soft curds; then break it up with a spoon and stir it through. Stirring too early turns the egusi to grit.
- Add the smoked mackerel, the soaked koobi, the crayfish, the salt and the remaining 250 ml water and simmer 15 minutes.
- Fold in the chopped leaves and cook uncovered 8 to 10 minutes, until the stew is dark green and glossy and the palm oil beads red at the edges.
- Serve with boiled yam.
Dishes with a similar flavor shape
- Cassava Leaf Plasas — Sierra Leonean
- Pondu (Saka-Saka) — Congolese
- Red Red (Black-Eyed Peas with Fried Plantain) — Ghanaian
- Granat Sup (Groundnut Stew with Chicken) — Sierra Leonean
- Afang Soup — Nigerian
Keep reading: what salinity, umami, richness mean in the flavor lexicon · the world's cuisines, by flavor.
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Every number above is Palate's engine-measured estimate, computed from this recipe's ingredients and techniques — not human-tasted ratings or reviews.