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Mpuh Fish ( Spicy fish in plantain pudding)

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Author: Imma
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Mpuh Fish- Steamed spicy fish in plantain flour paste, consisting of red bell pepper, onions, palm oil, and African spices.

Mbuh fish

This is one recipe, that I kept getting request after request -I  just couldn’t hide from it. The truth is I have never made this until now. I only got an opportunity to try it out during a recent trip to my hometown. So I had to do some poking around and it was not easy.

Most traditional African dishes are hard to find on the Internet or cooking books, especially one that is frequently made by a small group of people or Tribe. So I had to seek out some help from a very dear friend of mine – Rachel, one of the best cooks I know. Unfortunately for me, she lives in another State. Sigh! Yes, disappointing to me because I don’t get to put my feet up very often when I visit friends and family – with her I get to do it.

When I gave birth to my son (sous chef) she came to visit and by the time she left my fridge was stocked with meals- not just a bowl or something, it was enough to feed an army for a month. You name it; she can whip it up- from everyday American meals to traditional African meals. She is my life Saver!!! And I am so honored to call her a friend. Rachel I appreciate you!!!

Mbuh fish

Ok, let’s get down to business, although this might seem like a time-consuming meal. It is however quite easy if you have your plantain flour ready. Then the rest is easy breezy.

Mbuh fish is a traditional plantain flour (mpuh) meal that is consumed in Cameroon, particularly in the South West Region of the Country. Nothing is more comforting like a meal you grew up eating when homesickness kicks in.

 Mbuh Fish

The basic spices are country onions, African nutmeg, and Njansa, hot pepper, salt and red oil. Palm oil is used to give it color; I threw in some red bell pepper and onion as well for extra flavor. This is just my on special touch to this meal. If you don’t have the traditional African condiments, you can use granulated garlic, ginger to spice things up.

All you need to do is blend all the spices in the food processor, blender or coffee grinder, add to the flour, mix, wrap and cook.

You can use any fish, you like for this, and I tried it with mackerel, red snapper and catfish and all worked fine. Be sure to salt the fish before placing in the plantain mixture.

Mbuh fish

By the way, use foil paper, parchment paper if you do not have plantain leaves or place in plantain leaves first and then completely wrap in foil paper, if you are not using a steamer. Or you can put in a an oven safe container, cover with foil and steam cook.

Plantain Flour

For homemade plantain flour check out this recipe here 

Enjoy!!!!

Watch How To Make It

 

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Mpuh Fish ( Spicy fish in plantain pudding)
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Mpuh Fish

Mpuh Fish- Steamed spicy fish in plantain flour paste, consisting of red bell pepper, onions , palm oil and African spices.
4.50 from 2 votes
Prep: 45 minutes
Cook: 1 hour
Total: 1 hour 45 minutes
African
Servings 4 -5

Ingredients

  • 2-3 pounds fish steaks
  • 2 tablespoons Njangsa spice
  • 1 country onion spice
  • 1 African nutmeg ehuru spice
  • 1/3 green pepper
  • ½ medium onions
  • 2-3 tablespoons palm oil
  • 1 tablespoon/1 large cube Bouillon powder or Maggi powder
  • 1 habanero pepper adjust to taste.
  • 2 cups or more water

Instructions

  • If using catfish ,pour hot water over the fish in the sink, let it sit for a minute, then rinse and clean the fish (this removes all the sliminess of the fish). Skip this if you using any other white fish. Set aside
  • Using a food processor or blender, blend onions, bell pepper spices and pepper, until puree. You may use about ¼ cup or more water.
  • In a bowl combine the mixture with plantain flour, bouillon powder, Palm oil and water. Mixture should be more like pancake barter.
  • Finally add the fish and coat in mixture
  • Cut the banana leaves into rectangles, remove any ugly edges, submerge them in water to clean and drain pat- dry. Use saran wrap if banana leaves are not available
  • The leaves must be heated and wilted over an open high flame to make them flexible.
  • Then, cut the aluminum into large squares/ rectangles and place a piece of the leaf / saran wrap on it. Repeat the process and set them aside
  • Place one to two pieces of fish in on the leaf with enough plantain mixture
  • Then quickly fold aluminum over it, and press sides into a rectangle shape making sure to press inwards so none of the Koki runs out.
  • Then fold the sides in to seal twice. Repeat the process and set them
  • Place the mbuh in the pot and steam.
  • I usually Line the bottom of a large saucepan or Dutch oven a small rack or just use foil paper. The mpuh should barely come in contact with the water so they don’t get soggy.
  • Cook for about an hour and remove let it cool then serve warm

Tips & Notes:

  1. If you don’t have the traditional African condiments, you can use granulated garlic, ginger to spice things up.
  2. You can use any fish, you like for this, and I tried it with mackerel, red snapper and catfish and all worked fine. Be sure to salt the fish before placing in the plantain mixture.
  3. You can use foil paper, parchment paper if you do not have plantain leaves or place in plantain leaves first and then completely wrap in foil paper, if you are not using a steamer

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 411kcal (21%)| Carbohydrates: 4g (1%)| Protein: 45g (90%)| Fat: 22g (34%)| Saturated Fat: 7g (44%)| Cholesterol: 149mg (50%)| Sodium: 257mg (11%)| Potassium: 1025mg (29%)| Sugar: 2g (2%)| Vitamin A: 335IU (7%)| Vitamin C: 14.6mg (18%)| Calcium: 25mg (3%)| Iron: 0.9mg (5%)
Author: Imma
Course: Main
Cuisine: African
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Nutrition Facts
Mpuh Fish
Amount Per Serving
Calories 411 Calories from Fat 198
% Daily Value*
Fat 22g34%
Saturated Fat 7g44%
Cholesterol 149mg50%
Sodium 257mg11%
Potassium 1025mg29%
Carbohydrates 4g1%
Sugar 2g2%
Protein 45g90%
Vitamin A 335IU7%
Vitamin C 14.6mg18%
Calcium 25mg3%
Iron 0.9mg5%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

 

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Comments & Reviews

  1. Rachel B says

    5 stars
    I don’t know if you will see this or not, but for the Maggi powder, did you mean the coconut one? I searched on Amazon for Maggi powder and several things came up. I was able to located the other two spices mentioned. Thank you 🙂 I can’t wait to make this, I am in the middle of cooking your okra and chicken recipe while I search your page and pin more of your delicious recipes, thank you for taking the time to share them all!

    Reply

    • ImmaculateBites says

      Thanks for pinning Rachel. For the Maggi powder you can use chicken bouillon powder which I use it all the time . Do let me know how it works out for you .

      Reply

  2. Brandies Mevaa says

    4 stars
    Thanks for sharing these recipes. I’m an African American. My husband is Cameroonian so I always want to try and impress him by cooking things that remind him of home. This has been a good place for me to find things. I cooked this meal this weekend for fathers day along with the Chicken Pepper Soup recipe (Only I used Turkey as my husband prefers turkey).

    It came out okay. Next time I will be more generous with the plantain mixture so that it really is more present. Also mine ended up being darker once I cooked it. I used Catfish, not sure if it was just because I didn’t use enough of the plantain mixture or what but it was still very tasty. The hardest part was preparing the banana leaves without breaking them. I ended up using foil with the leaves to just to make sure the koki was protected. 🙂

    Reply

    • ImmaculateBites says

      I hear you! Cooking with plantain leaves is quite tricky depending on the leaves- most often they do break apart. So foil is always helpful. The darkness make be the result of a combination of the ingredients and the plantain leaves. Probably more plantains might help. Thanks for taking the time to provide feedback.

      Reply

  3. nicole says

    Thank you for this recipe i tried it and it worked even though it took me soo much time to prepare the plantains flour. I enjoyed it.

    Reply

  5. mamsy says

    I have been longing to prepare this.Thank you for this recipe. But how much plantain flour do we need for this recipe?
    Can I replace the palm oil with canola oil?Thanks

    Reply

  6. Charlene @ That Girl Cooks Healthy says

    I appreciate your candidness Imma, if it’s any consolation I have a similar issue with obtaining a few traditional island recipes. I have to depend on the elders to seek that knowledge. One good thing about reviving traditional recipes is giving them that exclusive exposure and putting it on the map. I’m all about fish and plantain, you already know this is on the list, I have some unused frozen snapper in the freezer, ready to be cooked. Btw, can I use coconut oil instead of palm oil?

    Reply