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Kenyan Amaranth Ukwaju Fish Soup

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Kenyan Amaranth Ukwaju Fish Soup

The amaranth plant is an ancient food crop, with cultivation dating back as far as 6700 BC.


Cooked Amaranth leaves are eaten as vegetables, soups, stews and relishes. Leaves and young plant stems are cooked in Kenya and throughout Eastern and Southern Africa as spinach. Kenyan Ukwaju or Kenya tamarind is a sour tasting paste used as a spice. 



Amaranth leaves have a mild flavor and when paired with another local favorite, Ukwaju Kenyan Amaranth Ukwaju Fish Soup makes delicious satisfying African meal. 


Kenyan Amaranth Ukwaju Fish Soup


African Recipes by

Kenyan Ukwaju or Kenya tamarind is a sour tasting paste used as a spice. Amaranth leaves have a mild flavor and when paired with Ukwaju, Kenyan Amaranth Ukwaju Fish Soup makes delicious satisfying African recipe. 

 Ingredients
1 pound red snapper fillets 
2 large handfuls amaranth or spinach leaves 
1/2 cup tamarind juice 
1 tablespoon tamarind paste 
1 large red onion, chopped 
2 tablespoons tomato paste 
1 teaspoon shallots, chopped 
1 teaspoon onion salt 
1 teaspoon onion powder 
1 teaspoon garlic powder 
1 teaspoon salt 
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes 
2 tablespoons salted butter 
4 cups fish stock or water 

 Directions
Add all ingredients except amaranth or spinach leaves into a large pot and simmer 30 minutes. Add leaves simmer 5 minutes and serve.


The African Gourmet explores how African food, history, and science intertwine. Here, a plant is a healer, a story is a map, and the kitchen is a laboratory. I’m Ivy — a writer raised by historians, now sharing Africa’s wisdom from the U.S. through cookbooks, cultural research, and storytelling. If you’re curious about where flavor meets memory, you belong here.

Recipes Explain Politics

When Rice Recipes Become Revolution

What if your grandmother's rice recipe could explain the Liberian Rice Riots of 1979?

"In Liberia, rice isn't just food—it's life, identity, and sovereignty. When the government proposed raising rice prices in 1979, they weren't just adjusting economics; they were threatening every grandmother's ability to feed her family according to traditions passed down for generations."

The riot that followed wasn't about politics—it was about the sacred right to cook your family's rice recipe.

The Deeper Recipe

  • Ingredients: Colonial trade patterns + Urbanization + Economic inequality
  • Preparation: Political disconnect from daily survival needs
  • Serving: 40+ deaths, regime destabilization, and a warning about ignoring cultural fundamentals

This is African Gourmet analysis: understanding how the food in grandmother's pot connects to the protests in the streets. The recipes we inherit carry not just flavor, but the entire history of our political and economic struggles.

Read the Rice Riots Analysis → Try Liberian Rice Bread Recipe
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African Gourmet FAQ

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Why "The African Gourmet" if you're an archive?

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We maintain 18 years of continuous cultural documentation—a living timeline of African expression. Unlike static repositories, our archive connects historical traditions with contemporary developments, showing cultural evolution in real time.

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The archive spans all 54 African nations, with particular attention to preserving underrepresented cultural narratives. Our mission is comprehensive cultural preservation across the entire continent.

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