 Kachumbari | |
| Course | Salad |
|---|---|
| Region or state | African Great Lakes |
| Main ingredients | Tomato, onion |
| Ingredients generally used | Chilli and salt |
| Variations | Lime/lemon juice, coriander, parsley, cucumber, avocado, gin, vodka |
| Similar dishes | Pico de gallo, salsa fresca |
Kachumbari is a fresh tomato and onion saladrelish that is popular in the cuisines of theAfrican Great Lakes region. It is an uncooked salad dish consisting of chopped tomatoes, onions, and chili peppers.[1] Variations of kachumbari can be found inKenya,Tanzania,Rwanda,Uganda,Burundi and in the Southern African countries of Malawi and Congo.[2]
TheSwahili wordkachumbari originated from theIndian wordcachumber.
Kachumbari is used as a salad side dish for a main meal. In Kenya, it is used as acondiment served withpilau (pilaf),[3]mukimo,[4] or a meal ofnyama choma (roasted meat) andugali. In Tanzania, it is eaten with rice pilau orbiryani. In Malawi, it is usually eaten on its own like any other salad dish, while in Uganda it is normally eaten withnyama choma.
Other ingredients, such as lime or lemon juice, freshcilantro (coriander ordhania), parsley, avocado, or cucumber, and in some cases gin orvodka, can also be added. Some recipe variations also call forhabanero or Scotch bonnet peppers, with a touch of ground cayenne pepper.[3]
Kachumbari is popular throughout the African Great Lakes region and can be eaten with African pilaf and Africanbiryani. InMalawi, it is calledsumu orshum or simply "tomato and onion salad".
