Republic of Congo | Side

Saka-Saka au Poisson Fumé

Name: Saka-Saka au Poisson Fumé
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 95 min
Total time: 120 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Republic of Congo, Central Africa
Ingredients: 600 g pounded cassava leaves, fresh or frozen and thawed; 200 g smoked fish or smoked cod, soaked if salty, bones removed; 1 large onion, diced; 3 cloves garlic, minced; 1 whole green pepper or leek, chopped; 4 tbsp red palm oil; 3 tbsp peanut butter or crushed peanuts; 3 cups water or fish stock; 1 whole hot chile; salt, after tasting the fish

Congolese saka-saka with smoked fish, pounded cassava leaves, palm oil, peanut butter, onion, garlic, and chile.

Country

Republic of Congo

Region

Central Africa

Time

120 min

Serves

Level

medium

Start cooking Explore Republic of Congo recipes

01 / Get ready

Everything you need

Tap each ingredient as you gather it. Illustrations are visual guides; follow the ingredient names and quantities.

Servings 6

Scale the dish before you shop, then use the checklist while you cook.

Jump to method My cookbook

Ingredients

For 6 servings

Side

A few kitchen essentials

Suggested from the recipe method. Use equivalent equipment you have.

Lidded pot

Wooden spoon

02 / Let’s cook

One step at a time

Keep the rhythm calm, watch the texture, and adjust seasoning at the end.

Back to Republic of Congo

5 steps 25 min prep 95 min cook (check method) 120 min total medium

Cook leaves

Simmer cassava leaves with water or fish stock until they begin to soften.

Cook leaves 45:00

Make base

Cook onion, garlic, green pepper or leek if using, and chile in palm oil until fragrant.

Cook base 08:00

Combine

Stir the palm-oil base and peanut butter into the cassava leaves until the sauce looks rich.

Enrich leaves 10:00

Add fish

Fold in smoked fish and simmer gently until the leaves are very tender and the fish seasons the pot.

Simmer fish 30:00

Finish

Taste before adding salt, then serve hot with chikwangue, fufu, rice, or plantain.

Every household has small variations. Start here, then adjust seasoning, heat, and serving sides to your kitchen.

Cooking notes, photos & serving ideas

Recipe context

More about this dish

Serving ideas, regional context, and cooking cues for when you want more detail.

When to cook it

Best for Daily meals, communal gatherings. Plan on a medium cook. Allow about 120 minutes total.

What to serve alongside it

Chikwangue, fufu, rice, plantain, or poulet muambe

Regional lane

Republic of Congo national table. A structured Republic of Congo dish in the AfroKitchen archive.

Chef watch-outs

Rushing the base before the raw edge has cooked out.
Adding all seasoning early and forgetting to adjust at the end.
Cooking on heat that is too high once the dish should be steaming or simmering.

How you know it is ready

The aroma should smell rounded rather than raw or sharp.
Oil, sauce, broth, or steam should look settled and deliberate.
The final texture should match the dish style before you plate it.

Recipe illustrations

See the dish before you cook

Take a closer look at the dish and its serving ideas.

Cassava-leaf stew with fish and a cassava accompaniment; recipe illustration — Saka-Saka au Poisson Fumé finished dish · Recipe illustration

Chef board

Build the table around Saka-Saka au Poisson Fumé

Chikwangue, fufu, rice, plantain, or poulet muambe

Best route from here

Republic of Congo national table

Collections to keep cooking

Explore Republic of Congo recipes

Explore more recipes