Cameroonian Fried Pork and Plantains
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A popular Cameroonian street food featuring crispy fried pork and fried plantains served with a flavorful green sauce made from blended spices and herbs. This dish combines tender pork, sweet and savory plantains, and a spicy, aromatic sauce for a soul-satisfying meal.
00:40:00 total
Serves 6
medium
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Ingredients
- pork - 5-6 pounds (5-6 pounds, combination of ribs without bones cut into cubes, pork cushion meat, and pork feet; or pork chops cut into bite-size pieces)
- basil (codo) - 6 sprigs (6 sprigs fresh)
- ginger root - 2 thumb sizes (2 thumb-sized pieces, peeled and sliced)
- garlic - 2 bulbs (2 bulbs, about 20-23 cloves, peeled)
- leek - 1 (1 leek, cut into chunks)
- leafy celery or parsley - 6 sprigs (6 sprigs leafy Chinese celery or substitute with parsley)
- habanero or scotch bonnet pepper - 1 (1 whole for heat)
- whole white pepper - 2 teaspoons (2 teaspoons)
- Ehuru (African nutmeg) - 2 (2 pebe (whole))
- salt - 3 teaspoons total (2 teaspoons for meat, 1 teaspoon for sauce, adjust to taste)
- Maggi seasoning cubes - 6 cubes total (4 cubes for meat, 2 cubes for sauce, adjust to taste)
- water - 1 cup (about 1 cup for blending spices)
- oil - watch the video to see (1 cup for frying spices, plus additional oil for deep frying plantains)
- plantains - 6 (6 half-ripe plantains, peeled)
- thinly sliced onions - watch the video to see (for serving)
- minced parsley - watch the video to see (for garnish)
- mayonnaise - watch the video to see (for serving on the side)
Instructions
- Prepare the meat: Thoroughly rinse the pork meat and transfer it to a pot.
- Make the spice paste: In a blender, add fresh basil, peeled and sliced ginger, garlic cloves, leek chunks, leafy celery or parsley, habanero or scotch bonnet pepper, whole white pepper, African nutmeg, and about 1 cup of water. Blend into a smooth paste.
- Season the meat: Add 2 teaspoons salt and 4 Maggi seasoning cubes to the meat. Add 1 cup of the blended spice paste to the pork and mix well.
- Cook the meat: Turn heat to medium-high and bring the meat to a simmer. Let it cook for about 20 minutes or until tender.
- Prepare the green sauce: In another pot, heat 1 cup of oil. Add the remaining blended spice paste, 1 teaspoon salt, and 2 Maggi seasoning cubes. Bring to a simmer and cook for 5 to 10 minutes.
- Fry the plantains: Peel the plantains (preferably half-ripe). Heat oil for deep frying on medium-high heat. Deep fry the plantains whole until golden. Remove and drain on paper towels.
- Chop meat and plantains: Let the fried plantains cool slightly. Chop the fried plantains and cooked pork into bite-sized pieces.
- Fry pork and plantains together: Heat some oil in a skillet. Fry the chopped pork and plantains together briefly.
- Combine with green sauce: In a skillet over medium heat, add a good amount of the green sauce. Add the fried pork and plantains along with thinly sliced onions. Toss well to coat everything with the sauce.
- Serve: Serve garnished with minced parsley and a scoop of mayonnaise on the side. Optionally add pepper sauce for extra heat.
