It was more difficult to describe this recipe than to make it. Here's why:

By: Li Awad​
     This recipe is a bit of a Western take on the common recipe baasto iyo suugo  (literally, pasta and sauce) because it uses some things you might not find where I’m from, or substitutes for things that aren’t easily found here. The name is so simple (or at least how my family has taught me how to refer to it) and changes depending on the city, household and what’s in your pantry. 
     It’s really simple to make once you have it down and you can easily adjust all of the ingredients to your liking, because one of the principles of Somali food is ditch the recipe and cook something good by eyeballing everything and using what you have. Do you have some beef you need to use up, but not enough for a meal? Leftover soup from yesterday? Just throw them together with some rice and spices and you have dinner. It’s really more of a creative set of techniques to get good food on the table. 
      Now, due to this wonderful ideology of cooking, Somali “recipes” are an absolute nightmare for anyone who isn’t used to cooking without a recipe. Why do I put recipes in quotation marks? It’s so hard to decipher when your auntie or mother tells you, “a bit of babaas (pepper) only, and a dash of xawaash (spices).” And once you follow those vague instructions, they tell you, “Oh this is way too little. I said a little but not this much,” as they proceed to dump what looks like a bucket of spices into the pot.
​       And wanna know the worst part? They always leave out an ingredient or “forget” how much of one ingredient you need to add to the recipe. You’ll know something is missing but you won’t ever realize what it is to make you always come back to visit them so they can make it with you. 

The Deciphered Recipe

  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil or cooking oil of your choice (use more or less; just enough to cover the bottom of the pot somewhat moderately)
  • 1 medium white onion (can be substituted with red onion if you have it)
  • (Optional) 1 cup or a handful of ground beef or any meat of your choice (make sure it's in small pieces)
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • 1 medium or large tomato
  • A bit of cilantro
  • About a quarter to half teaspoon of coriander, cumin
  • Salt & pepper (to taste)
  • 90 ml of tomato paste (half a small can on average) or three spoonfuls on average
  • For additional flavour, use 1 whole bouillon cube or vegetable/beef stock 
  • For spice, Ethiopian spice mix to taste or green chillies (any will do); This is optional but highly recommended
  • 2 - 3 medium white potatoes fully peeled and chopped
  • 1 large chopped carrot
  • 1 - 2 green onions sliced
  • About 3 - 5 servings of a pasta of your choice
  • Optionally, 1 medium or half a large green bell pepper chopped to stir in at the end (Don’t forget to remove seeds and core)
Author’s Note: It’s OK if you are missing some of these ingredients. You can leave them out or substitute them with another spice/vegetable of your choice; it will probably turn out well, and don’t forget to really spice your sauce. It’s always better to overseason than underseason or the sauce might not be that flavourful. Additionally, Somali food doesn’t look visually appealing most of the time, but it smells and tastes a LOT better than what you see.

Now onto the actual cooking!

(Below are the phases your sauce should go through as you follow the instructions. Make sure to make your pasta of choice while this is cooking)
  • ​Turn the heat to high and put your oil in your pot, and once it’s somewhat hot, throw in your onions and minced garlic and caramelize them both in the oil. Make sure to keep moving them to not burn them. 
  • Optional Step: Once they have browned in colour and softened up, add in your meat of choice or a handful of ground beef and stir it in the pot until it has browned and mostly/entirely cooked through.
  • Lower the heat to medium high. Add your chopped potatoes and diced carrots now and mix them all together as best you can. 
  • Next, add in all of your spices and stir them quickly in the pot along with the tomato paste. Now put in your chopped tomatoes as well.
  • The mixture will look dry or almost dried out at this point so don’t forget to add in your bouillon cube and break it down before adding water (enough to cover all the vegetables. Use stock if you aren’t using a bouillon cube.​
  • Now gently bring the mixture into a gentle simmer on medium - medium high heat and cover with a pot lid occasionally stirring every 10 mins or so. ​
  • Once your sauce has begun to slightly thicken and your potatoes and carrots are half-way cooked through, add in your green onions and cilantro and stir them in. (We add them so late because they easily wilt). 
  • Optional Step: Once your sauce has thickened, turn off the heat and add in your chopped green bell pepper and stir it in.  While stirring it in, break down some of the potatoes a little bit but not too much.​
  • Serve over pasta of your choice and enjoy! (To better enjoy the spices, I recommend squeezing lemon over it.)