Kombo Natural Salt for Cooking African Food

Kombo, a traditional salt from South Sudan.

Kombo is a strong alkali solution, an alternative name is lye. Chemically it contains a mix of sodium hydroxides, potassium phosphates and potassium carbonates. In South Sudan and many parts of Africa it is homemade by running water through ashe from cooking. Place the ashes in a pot with holes at the bottom, run water through the ashes, and the liquid that leaches out into a receiving container is called Kombo. To get a quality Kombo solution, our grandmothers knew to select dried plants from legumes, groundnuts, and specific trees. The strong alkali solution breaks down the hard cellulose fibers in dark leafy greens that otherwise take forever to cook. Kombo is hard to measure, it is titrated based on taste, and based on the quantity of food being cooked.
Kombo imparts to meals an extra taste that is unlike salty, sweetness, acidic or bitter; an additional taste highly favored in African cuisine. Kombo is added to meals cooked with smoked meat or smoked fish, and to meals that call for peanut butter, greens or okra foods.

This Kombo is made by South Sudanese women refugees in the Bidibidi camp in Uganda. Your purchase helps these women provide for their children.

HOW TO USE:
Take half a teaspoon and mix with 1/4 cup of water in a glass. Allow to sit for 15min. Remove from the top layer 1 to 2 tablespoons and add to the pot cooking your greens. You will notice a color change and taste change. Adjust your table salt, you will need less table salt than usual.

Get Updates - no spam