Suugo (Somali Spaghetti Sauce)
Suugo is the Somali version of spaghetti sauce. Baasta iyo suugo translates to pasta in sauce. Italy once colonized the southern part of Somalia, introducing garlic and onion to their cuisine. Suugo specifically uses red onion, green bell pepper, and beef stew meat. The addition of xawaash gives the tomato sauce a unique savory flavor. Suugo is garnished with cilantro and a squeeze of fresh lime juice. And with most Somali dishes, a banana is served on the side. Sounds weird, but it works.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 medium red onion diced
- 1 green bell pepper diced
- 5 garlic cloves minced
- 1 1/2 lbs beef stew meat 1/2” cubes
- 2 medium tomatoes diced
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 tbsp xawaash
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 lb spaghetti al dente
- bananas 1 per person
Garnish
- cilantro chopped
- lime juice
Instructions
- Heat up cooking oil in a large sauce pan over medium high heat. Sauté the onions and green peppers for 5 minutes. Add in the garlic and cook for 1 more minute.
- Add in the beef. Sauté for 5 minutes until browned.
- Add in the tomatoes, tomato paste, xawaash, sugar, and black pepper. Cover and simmer over medium heat for 30 minutes.
- Uncover. Season with salt.
