Easy recipe: Swahili Boko Boko delight

Let’s make this delicious meal known as Boko Boko, a labour of pure love and lots of strength. I had to sit down on the floor to ‘songa’ (pound) it to perfection.

The meal is also known as harees in the Middle East. It was brought down to the coast of East Africa by Middle Eastern settlers. It is so good, we in Swahili land make it in our own twisted way and love to have it with some ghee and sugar.

I simplified this recipe by using cracked wheat rather than whole wheat. This saves a lot of time and energy.

What you will need 

1 and 1/2 cup cracked wheat, soaked and cleaned

1/4 cup rice (cooked until soft)

3-4 sticks cinnamon

6-8 whole cardamoms

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15-20 black peppercorns

1/2kg steak, cut in cubes

Salt to taste

2 teaspoons ghee

1 tablespoon coriander seeds

1 and 1/2 litre water

What to do

In a pressure cooker, pour the water and follow with the whole spices and salt. 

Go in with the soaked cracked wheat, add the meat. Cover and cook for about 30 minutes.

Add in the ghee. In a mortar and pastel, slightly crush the coriander seeds and add them into to the mixture mix well.

Now you want to sit down and start pounding using a spatula until mixture starts to mash. Add the cooked rice and continue to pound until it becomes stretchy and you start seeing tiny strings forming while you are pounding.

I’m told there is a machine that could do this for you but traditionally we do it by hand.

Once everything is super mixed and stretchy serve on a platter.  You can have it without sugar or ghee if you wish. Drizzle some extra melted ghee and sugar. Enjoy.