Moambe chicken facts for kids
Poulet à la moambe served with rice (left) and saka saka (right)
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| Type | Stew |
|---|---|
| Region or state | Central Africa |
| Main ingredients | Chicken |
| Ingredients generally used | Tomatoes, garlic, chili powder/peppers, lemon, red palm oil, squash or pumpkin, stock, okra |
Moambe chicken is a super tasty chicken dish. It's very popular in Central Africa. Many people even think it's the national dish of Angola. This dish is a kind of stew. It's made by mixing chicken with special spices and a unique ingredient called palm butter. You can find different versions of this dish all over Central Africa. It's even known in other parts of the world!
What is Moambe Chicken?
Moambe chicken is also known as poulet à la moambe in French. This means "chicken in palm butter sauce." The main ingredients are chicken, palm butter, and spinach. Chefs add spices like peri-peri or red pepper to give it a kick.
How is Moambe Chicken Made?
To make Moambe chicken, the chicken is cooked in a sauce. This sauce is made from moambe, which is palm butter. Spinach is often added too. After cooking, it's seasoned with spices. People usually eat it with sweet potatoes, brown onions, and hard-boiled eggs. A special sauce made from crushed palm nuts is also served with it. Sometimes, people enjoy Moambe chicken with rice or a paste made from cassava. Instead of chicken, some recipes use duck or fish.
Where is Moambe Chicken Popular?
Moambe chicken is a very important dish in several countries. It's seen as the national dish of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In Gabon, it's also a national dish and is called poulet nyembwe. And as we mentioned, it's a national dish in Angola, where it's known as moamba de galinha. Even though it's an Angolan dish, some people say its roots are "purely Brazilian." This yummy dish is also a common meal in homes in Belgium. If you visit Portugal, you might find Angolan Moambe chicken in restaurants, like Shilabo's in Lisbon.
