Cape Verde | Main dish

Xerem

Name: Xerem
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 80 min
Total time: 95 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Cape Verde, West Africa
Ingredients: 2 cups cracked corn or coarse cornmeal; 250 g smoked sausage or salted pork, diced; 1½ cups cooked beans; 2 cups shredded kale or cabbage; 1 large onion, chopped; 2 cloves garlic, minced; 2 whole bay leaves; 2 tbsp butter or olive oil; 7 cups water or light stock; salt and black pepper, to taste

Cape Verdean cracked-corn porridge or stew, cooked savory with bay, butter, beans, greens, and smoked meat or fish.

Country

Cape Verde

Region

West Africa

Time

95 min

Serves

Level

medium

Start cooking Explore Cape Verde 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

Main dish

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 Cape Verde

4 steps 15 min prep 80 min cook (check method) 95 min total medium

Start the pot

Cook onion, garlic, and smoked meat in butter or oil until aromatic.

base 08:00

Simmer corn

Add cracked corn, bay leaves, and stock. Simmer, stirring often, until the corn softens.

corn simmer 45:00

Add beans and greens

Stir in beans and greens and continue cooking until the pot is thick and cohesive.

finish simmer 20:00

Rest

Season, rest covered, and serve warm.

rest 05:00

Some versions are plain and buttery, while feast versions include pork, beans, squash, cabbage, or greens.

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 cool evenings, family pots, and rustic one-bowl meals.. Plan on a medium cook. Allow about 95 minutes total.

What to serve alongside it

Braised greens, fish stew, beans, or hot sauce.

Regional lane

Cape Verde national table. A structured Cape Verde dish in the AfroKitchen archive.

Chef watch-outs

Stopping the base before the pepper, onion, or spice edge has mellowed.
Thinning the pot before the body of the soup or stew has developed.
Overcooking the greens until the color and texture collapse.

How you know it is ready

The sauce should coat the spoon and taste rounded, not watery or raw.
Greens should be cooked through but still look alive and glossy.
The aroma should smell rounded rather than raw or sharp.

Recipe photos

See the dish before you cook

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

Xerem recipe from Cape Verde — Xerem finished dish

Chef board

Build the table around Xerem

Braised greens, fish stew, beans, or hot sauce.

Best route from here

Cape Verde national table

Collections to keep cooking

Explore Cape Verde recipes

Explore more recipes