Kontomire Stew (Ghana)

Photo: Christie Morgan Ison

Ingredients

4 Ts Olive or palm oil

1 small Onion, white, small dice

1 Hot peppers, very small dice

2 Tomatoes, seeded and diced (shock and peel if you want)

15 oz.s Tomato sauce

2 T.s Dried Bonito Flakes, soaked in 1/4 c. hot water and reserved

1 tsp. cayenne powder or other hot chili powder

1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper

8 cups fresh spinach, stems removed

10 large raw shrimp, peeled and deveined

Preparation

Heat about 4T of oil in large pan and add onions. Cook about 5 minutes or until softening and beginning to brown. (Don’t burn!) Add peppers and cook another 5 minutes. Add oil if product gets dry or onions start to burn. Add tomatoes and garlic, and cook for 10-15 minutes, again being careful not to burn the onion and garlic. During this time, when product gets dry, gradually add the bonito flakes and water and stir.

Add the tomato sauce, cayenne and crushed red pepper, and cook for another 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. The mixture will be very thick.

Add the spinach and raw shrimp, cover. Cook until spinach is wilted and shrimp is just cooked through, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to turn shrimp.

Serve with plain white rice, or more traditionally, boiled plantains. Traditionally eaten with the bare right hand, but we’ll let you use a fork.

Note: This stew is thickened with ground squash seeds called agushi/egusi in Ghana. If using, add with the tomato sauce. Whole seeds are sometimes available in African or Asian specialty markets, as are the bonito flakes. Both of these are optional but fun to try!