Avocado used to be one of my top five favorite fruits. In Cameroon, avocados are most often used as a delicious topping for bread or sandwiches. Another very popular way to enjoy them is as an accompaniment to various side dishes like steamed cassava, yams, or bobolo—very tasty. Avocado salad, on the other hand, used to be something rather special and rare for me. This mainly happened when avocados were plentiful. This was usually the case during the main harvest seasons, which run from February to May and from July to September. During these times, avocado prices are quite low, and they were practically everywhere.
What did you already know about avocados?
The avocado ( Persea americana Mill., also Persea gratissima CFGaertn.) is a plant species from the laurel family ( Lauraceae). Botanically speaking, the fruit is a berry .
Avocado originated in the tropical rainforests of Central Africa and Mexico.
Cameroon is one of the largest producers of avocados in Central Africa, with around 120,000 tons per year (as of 2016). The avocados produced in the country are used both for domestic consumption and for export.
Cameroonian avocados, especially those from Mbouda, are known for their dry, creamy texture and their distinctive, intense flavor. These qualities have earned them the name " Avocat-beurre, " or "Butteravocado" in English.
The main avocado-growing regions in Cameroon are the departments of Bamboutos (Mbouda, Babadjou, Galim, Bagam, Bamenkombo, etc.) and Menoua (Dschang). Other regions of the country also produce avocados, but on a smaller scale. Source
The avocados used in this recipe did not come from Cameroon, but the result was still not bad.
To give my salad a special touch, I sprinkled a few pomegranate seeds over it before serving. The sweet and sour flavor of the pomegranate goes well with the creaminess of the avocado.
I hope you all have fun trying it out!
The whole thing as a video
And as a download…
Salade d'avocat au graines de grenade| Avocado salad with pomegranate seeds
Ingredients
- 2 medium-sized ripe avocado
- approx. 100g mini Roma tomatoes
- 1/2 red onion
- 1 handful of pomegranate seeds
- 1 tbsp lemon juice or lemon syrup
- 1 tbsp rapeseed or sunflower oil
- Herb salt or Fondor
- pepper
- Salt
Instructions
- Wash and cut the avocado into a bowl. Scoop out the avocado flesh with an avocado knife or a spoon and place it in a bowl
- Chop the onions and tomatoes and place them in the bowl with herb salt, pepper, salt, lemon juice and cooking oil
- Mix everything together well, season to taste and let it sit for about 5 minutes. After serving, sprinkle a few pomegranate seeds over the salad and enjoy with your favorite bread or simply on its own.
