Kondres (stewed plantain)

Kondres (stewed plantains) is a very popular Cameroonian one-pot dish. Consisting of fresh herbs and spices, this deep flavoured and well seasoned dish is sure to get your taste buds tingling! It’s a great accompaniment with any other dish, or just served with rice!

Traditionally, this recipe requires you to use unripe green plantain, which can daunting. But fear not. It’s actually very simple and I made sure to keep it a one-pot recipe, so the only fiddly part is at the start.

In Cameroon, many people like the green plantain in this dish to have some bite with a chalky texture and a more savoury taste. Alternatively, you can cook it down completely so the plantain is soft and has a slightly sweet aftertaste.

Growing up, this was a dish I didn’t like so much. A lot of my aunties didn’t cook the plantain enough – in my opinion – as I preferred the plantain to be softer and sweeter. So, when developing this dish, I cooked it for a bit longer and fell in love with it!

Tip: If you are intrigued about having a more savoury version of this dish, simply reduce the cooking time from 30-35 minutes down to 20-25 minutes – let me know what you think!

Kondres (stewed plantain)

Vegan | gluten-free

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cooking time: 1 hour 46 minutes

Serves 4

Ingredients

Stage 1

·        1 red pepper

·        1 tbsp vegetable oil

Stage 2

·        1 large onion

·        2 red tomatoes

·        75g fresh parsley

·        5 garlic cloves

·        2 tbsp fresh ginger

Stage 3

·        2 tsp white pepper

·        1 tbsp thyme

·        1 tsp curry powder

·        1 maggie cube (optional)

·        150ml veg stock water

Stage 4

·        40g vegetable oil

Stage 5

·        3 green plantains – peeled and cut into 3cm-thick circles

·        1 400g tin of butter beans – drained

·        550ml veg stock water

Stage 6

·        50g fresh greens – or any leafy green of your choice

·        Pinch salt to taste

·        Pinch pepper to taste

Prep work:

1.      Blend all of stage 1 together – put to one side

2.      Mix 700ml of warm water with 1 tbsp veg stock powder – put to one side

Method

1.      Pre-heat oven to 200°C / gas mark 6.

2.      Cut the red pepper in half, de-seed, coat in 1 tbsp of oil and roast for 20-30 mins. Put to one side to cool down slightly.

3.      On a medium-high heat, add the blitzed-up stage 1 to a large pan and cook for 5-6 minutes. Stir continuously.

4.      Add all of stage 3 to the pan, heat up to a low simmer and cook for a further 10 minutes. Stir continuously.

5.      While the sauce is cooking in the pan, blend the roasted red pepper and stage 4 together until smooth. Once smooth add to the pan of sauce and stir well.

6.      Next add all of stage 5 together. Turn up the heat until the sauce starts to simmer. Cook for 30-35 minutes with the lid on, or until the plantain is soft enough to pierce a fork through.

7.      Add all Stage 6 and mix through, turn off the heat and let the greens finish cooking on a residual heat for 5 minutes.

8.      Serve hot on its own, with a side of rice, or with a dish of your choice.