RouteCotonou

Beninese Cuisine: Amiwo, Palm Nut Sauce & Gulf of Guinea Seafood

Benin's cuisine is one of West Africa's least-known but most rewarding — amiwo red cornmeal, rich palm nut sauce, the finest Atlantic seafood, and a tradition of elaborate celebration food

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1
Amiwo Red Cornmeal Restaurant
Amiwo — red maize flour cooked with tomato and palm oil — is Benin's most distinctive dish; the version at Cotonou's traditional restaurants comes with palm nut sauce and smoked fish
2
Noix de Palme Sauce
Palm nut sauce is the mother sauce of Beninese cooking — the red oil extracted from cooked palm nuts enriches stews of chicken, smoked fish, crab and snails
3
Atlantic Seafood in the harbor
Cotonou's fishing port lands fresh barracuda, dorado and langouste daily — the fish restaurants along the harbor road serve the catch grilled with green pepper and pepper sauce
4
Fried Yam Chip Street Food
Deep-fried yam chips with spicy tomato sauce are Cotonou's street food - sold from roadsides throughout the city from morning to midnight
5
Sodabi Palm Spirit Distillery Visit
Beninese sodabi is distilled from palm wine in copper stills in the village — the strongest version reaches 60% alcohol and is used in voodoo ceremonies as well as social drinking
6
Celebratory food at a Beninese party
Beninese family celebrations include an elaborate topping - whole roasted goat, jollofrice, fried plantain and yam stew for a table of 50 that goes all night