Central African
Gozo cassava porridge under kanda cassava-leaves stew, kanda meatballs bound with peanut paste, chikwangue fermented and steamed in banana leaves, Ubangi-River fish in maboke — the equatorial heartland Bantu kitchen at its most-rooted.
Gozo and Kanda
Central Africa's everyday meal — gozo is smooth cassava porridge, made by pounding boiled cassava into a fine paste; kanda is long-simmered cassava leaves with smoked fish, meat, palm oil, and onion, ladled over the gozo. The universal CAR plate. Source: Wikipedia (Central African Republic cuisine).
View page →Central African (CAR) cooking is the food of the landlocked rainforest-and-savanna country at the heart of the continent. The cuisine is built on cassava (pounded into gozo or grated into chikwangue), red palm oil, peanut, smoked fish from the Ubangi River, and meat from cattle, goat, and bush hunting. The everyday meal is gozo (smooth cassava porridge) eaten with a sauce. Ngunza is the long-stewed cassava-leaf-and-meat dish. Kanda ti nyma is meatballs in a peanut-and-okra sauce. Kanda meatballs are the celebration dish. Chikwangue is the most-distinct Central African carbohydrate. Maboke is fish wrapped in leaves and grilled.
The Palate
Start Here
Gozo (smooth cassava porridge) plated alongside kanda ti nyma (long-simmered cassava leaves with smoked fish, meat, palm oil).
Why start here · The universal CAR plate. The pairing represents Bantu cassava-and-cassava-leaves cooking at its purest.
Ground meat bound with peanut paste, breadcrumbs, onion, and spices, shaped into balls and simmered in palm-oil tomato sauce.
Why start here · The CAR festive dish. The peanut-bound meatball technique draws on the West-Central African groundnut tradition.
Fresh river fish marinated and wrapped in banana leaves, then grilled.
Why start here · The Ubangi River fishing village preparation. The banana-leaf technique infuses subtle aroma.
The Pantry
See all 23 ingredients›
Fruits
Grains & Staples
Dairy & Fats
Sauces & Condiments
On the Map
Where this cuisine is found
Regional Styles
Bangui and Ubangi River
The capital on the Ubangi River. River fishing tradition, modern restaurants, and the most-developed urban cuisine.
Forest South (Bayanga, Berbérati)
The dense rainforest south. The strongest cassava-leaves saka-saka and forest-product tradition.
Savanna North (Birao, Bria)
The Sahelian savanna north. Pastoralist meat traditions and brochettes.
How They Cook
Techniques that define this cuisine
