Kwacoco

A traditional Cameroonian dish made with cocoyam (a root vegetable also called malanga, yautia, and taro). After peeling, cleaning, and pureeing, the dough is wrapped in banana leaves, steamed, and served with numerous stews or soups.

Course Main, Side

Cuisine African

Diet Gluten Free

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 1

Total Time 1 15

Servings

Calories 408kcal

Author Imma

Ingredients

3 pounds (1.5k) cocoyam (malanga, taro, yautia)
¼ cup (60ml) water
1-2 teaspoon (5-10g) salt (I used garlic salt)

Instructions

Peel the cocoyams with a sharp knife. Peeling away from you, carefully draw the paring knife down the body of the cocoyam, being careful not to remove too much of the yam.
Look for any bad spots, such as bruising and discoloration, in the cocoyams as you peel. Remove the spots with the tip of the knife.
Cut into large chunks and rinse immediately to prevent discoloration. Leave them covered in cool water until ready to use.
Pulse the cocoyam in a food processor until it's pureed. Add just enough water to facilitate grinding. Add garlic salt if desired.
Traditionally, this is done with banana leaves. However, if you don't have banana leaves, make a square with aluminum foil and line it with heat-resistant plastic wrap.
Place about a cup of the cocoyam mixture on the plastic wrap. Then, fold the aluminum foil over it and press the sides into a rectangle, pressing inward so the grated cocoyam doesn't run out. Fold the sides in twice to seal.
Repeat until all the grated cocoyam has been wrapped and set aside.
Line a large pot with aluminum foil, place the cocoyam packages in the pot, and steam for about an hour.
Serve with mbanga or palmnut soup.

Notes

If you can wrap and steam kwacoco in banana leaves, it's even better.
Make sure the plastic wrap is heat-resistant and won't melt.
Please remember that the nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary significantly based on the products used in the recipe.

Nutrition