The key ingredient in ndolé is bitterleaf, a dark green leafy vegetable with a slightly bitter taste. Before cooking, the leaves are washed and scrubbed many times to reduce the bitterness to just the right level. Ground peanuts are added to give the stew a rich, creamy thickness, and the whole dish is seasoned with garlic, onions, crayfish and spices. The result is a deep, complex flavour unlike anything found elsewhere.
Ndolé is a celebratory dish — it appears at weddings, funerals, naming ceremonies, Christmas celebrations and family gatherings. Cooking a proper pot of ndolé takes hours of careful preparation, and many families have their own secret version handed down through generations. Grandmothers are often considered the best ndolé cooks, and their recipes are treasured.
Traditionally ndolé is eaten with plantains (a starchy relative of the banana, usually cooked by boiling or frying), boiled cassava, or white rice. The combination of the rich stew and starchy side dish is both filling and deeply comforting. Ndolé eaten with fried plantains is considered by many Cameroonians to be one of the world's great food combinations.
Ndolé has crossed Cameroon's borders and is now eaten by Cameroonian communities in France, the United States, and across Africa. Restaurants serving Cameroonian food in Paris or New York almost always offer ndolé as their signature dish. It travels with the people who love it, carrying a taste of home wherever they go.