Mpotompoto (Ghanaian Sweet Potato Porridge)
A savory Ghanaian one pot pottage of sweet potato simmered with ginger, onion, pepper and red palm oil. The sweet potato version of a dish classically made with yam.
Servings 4 servings
Ingredients
Aromatic Base
- 1 medium onion roughly chopped
- 1 ½ inch piece fresh ginger peeled
- 1 to 2 scotch bonnet or habanero peppers stemmed, seeds removed for less heat
- 2 medium tomatoes or 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 3 tablespoons red palm oil or 3 tablespoons neutral oil plus 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
The Pot
- 2 pounds orange fleshed sweet potatoes peeled, cut into 1 ½ inch chunks
- 3 cups water or light fish stock
- 1 cup flaked smoked mackerel or smoked herring optional but traditional, or 2 tablespoons dried shrimp
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt plus more to taste
- 1 small handful spinach or kontomire optional, chopped
Instructions
Build the Base
- Blend the onion, ginger, peppers and tomatoes to a rough paste. Leave some texture, do not puree smooth. If using tomato paste instead of fresh tomatoes, blend the onion, ginger and pepper with 2 tablespoons of water and add the paste in the next step.
- Heat the red palm oil in a heavy pot over medium heat until it loosens and brightens. Do not let it smoke.
- Add the blended paste and cook 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it darkens, tightens and pulls away from the sides of the pot.
Simmer and Finish
- Add the sweet potato chunks and turn them through the paste until coated. Pour in the water or stock, enough to come three quarters of the way up the sweet potato.
- Add the smoked fish if using. Bring to a simmer, reduce the heat, cover, and cook 15 to 20 minutes, until a knife slides into a chunk with no resistance.
- Uncover and mash about a third of the sweet potato against the side of the pot with a wooden spoon, leaving the rest in recognizable pieces. The mashed portion thickens the liquid.
- Taste and season with salt. Stir in the spinach if using and cook 2 minutes more. Loosen with a splash of hot water if the pot has tightened too far.
- Rest off the heat 5 minutes before serving. It thickens as it settles.
Notes
- The classic starch: Mpotompoto is traditionally made with yam or cocoyam. This is the sweet potato version, which Ghanaian kitchens also cook.
- Cut size: Keep the chunks at 1 ½ inches. Smaller pieces dissolve completely.
- If adapting a yam recipe: halve every simmer time. Sweet potato is tender in 18 minutes and turns to mush by 30.
- Palm oil: medium heat only, and never let it smoke. Burnt palm oil cannot be rescued.
- Salt late: smoked fish releases salt slowly into the pot.
- Texture target: a spoon trail should close slowly. Not a smooth puree, not a brothy soup.
- Storage: fridge up to 4 days, freezer up to 2 months. Reheat with 2 to 3 tablespoons of water per bowl.
- For babies and toddlers: mash smooth and leave out the pepper.