Burundian Cuisine

Burundian cuisine is a hearty, wholesome and communal tradition, rooted in the produce of the country's green hills and the fish of Lake Tanganyika. Beans are a true staple, simmered and served with plantains, sweet potatoes, cassava and ugali, a firm maize porridge, all enriched with peanut and vegetable sauces and leafy greens. From the lake comes ndagala, tiny silvery fish fried crisp and much loved, while brochettes of grilled goat and roasted plantains are festive favourites. Fresh tropical fruit, and the celebrated Burundian coffee grown on the hillsides, round out the table. Simple, filling and generously shared, the food reflects the warmth of life in the land of a thousand hills.

The main sights

• The beans and plantains - the staple beans with plantains and ugali.
• Ndagala - the tiny crisp-fried lake fish.
• The goat brochettes - the grilled goat skewers and roasted plantains.
• The coffee - the celebrated Burundian hillside coffee.

When to go

Year-round; Burundian food is enjoyed across the country and through the diaspora. Hearty beans with plantains, crisp-fried ndagala from Lake Tanganyika, and grilled goat brochettes are the staples to seek out, along with excellent local coffee.

Things to know

Burundian cooking is hearty and staple-based, centred on beans, plantains and ugali, so its charm lies in warmth, freshness and communal sharing more than variety. As a wholesome, generous highland tradition, from staple beans and plantains to crisp lake fish and grilled goat, rounded off with fine coffee, though, Burundian cuisine is a genuine and satisfying taste of the land.

Nearby

The eateries of Bujumbura and Gitega, and Burundian communities abroad, serve it.