Sierra Leone
Cassava leaf stews, groundnut soups and smoky jollof over rice.
Iconic recipes
Plasas (Cassava Leaf Stew)
Sierra Leone's national dish — pounded cassava leaves slow-cooked in red palm oil with smoked fish, dried shrimp, groundnut paste and ogiri for that signature dark, velvety, deeply savoury stew over rice.
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Potato Leaf Plasa (Petehteh Leaf Stew)
Finely chopped sweet potato (petehteh) leaves stewed down with palm oil, peanut paste, smoked fish, ogiri and a touch of okra — a Salone household favourite, lighter and grassier than its cassava-leaf cousin.
Granat Sup (Sierra Leonean Groundnut Soup)
Salone's classic 'granat sup' — beef (or chicken) simmered in palm oil with onion, a little tomato and groundnut paste until the peanuts cook out fragrant, glossy and the oil floats on top. Served over white rice.
Okroh Soup (Sierra Leonean Okra Soup)
Salone okroh sup — fresh okra grated to a glossy, ropey draw, simmered in red palm oil with beef, smoked fish, dried shrimp and scotch bonnet until rich, slippery and deeply savoury. Eaten with rice or foofoo.
Tola Soup (Beniseed / Sesame Soup)
A Salone delicacy from the east — roasted beniseed (sesame seeds) ground to a paste and simmered with beef, smoked fish, palm oil and scotch bonnet into a nutty, glossy soup. Especially loved in Kono and Kailahun.
Bittas Soup (Bitter Leaf Soup)
Salone bittas sup — washed bitter leaves slow-cooked in red palm oil with beef or cowfoot, smoked fish, dried shrimp and ogiri. The leaves are repeatedly squeezed to tame the bitterness into a clean, herbal edge.
Sierra Leonean Smoky Jollof Rice
Salone-style jollof: parboiled rice cooked in a deeply spiced pepper base until the bottom catches just enough to perfume every grain with smoke.
Sierra Leonean Groundnut Stew
Krio-style peanut stew with chicken, sweet potato and scotch bonnet.
Sierra Leonean Okra Soup
Palm-oil okra soup with smoked fish and beef, served with foofoo.
Poyo (Palm Wine)
Fresh sap tapped from oil or raffia palms, naturally fermented into a milky, tangy Sierra Leonean staple served at gatherings.
Sierra Leonean Ginger Cake
Moist, spiced butter cake heavy on fresh ginger and molasses — a Krio tea-time favourite.
Sierra Leonean Ginger Drink (Jinjah)
Fiery Krio ginger beer sweetened with sugar and brightened with lime — sold in chilled sachets across Freetown.
Tombi (Sweet Corn Drink)
Creamy Krio drink of milled maize simmered with sugar, milk and nutmeg — a Freetown street favourite.
Sorrel Drink (Bissap Krio)
Deep-red hibiscus brew steeped with ginger, cloves and pineapple peel — served ice-cold at Sierra Leonean weddings.
Sierra Leonean Rice Bread
Dense, sweet Krio quick-bread made with rice flour, ripe banana and nutmeg — sold wrapped in banana leaf.
Binch Akara (Black-Eyed Pea Fritters)
Krio breakfast fritters of skinned black-eyed peas whipped with onion and pepper, fried crisp and dipped in pepper sauce.
Kaklo (Fried Ripe Plantain)
Sweet ripe plantain slices fried until caramelised — the classic partner to jollof, plasas and beans.
Sierra Leonean Coconut Rice
Long-grain rice simmered in fresh coconut milk with onion and thyme — served with grilled fish or pepper chicken.
Sierra Leonean Pepper Chicken
Charred marinated chicken glazed with a fiery scotch-bonnet and ginger pepper sauce — a Freetown roadside classic.
Krain Krain (Jute Leaf Soup)
Silky green jute-leaf soup with smoked fish, crayfish and palm oil — ladled over rice or fufu.
Grilled Pepper Fish
Whole snapper or barracuda slathered in scotch-bonnet paste and charcoal-grilled — Aberdeen beach classic.