ExploFood · Africa
What to eat in Liberia
Five dishes to try in Liberia, the most typical first. Two are vegetarian.
Five dishes to try in Liberia
Palm butter
Rich stew of palm nut cream with meat or fish, spooned over rice.
How to have it: Also look for cassava leaf and potato greens stews; cookshops serve them with rice at lunch.
Jollof rice
Rice cooked in a spiced tomato and pepper sauce with meat or chicken.
How to have it: Shared with West Africa; a fixture at parties and cookshops, served with fried plantain.
Pepper soup
Very hot, thin soup of fish or meat with chilli and spices.
How to have it: A popular evening and bar dish in Monrovia; ask how hot it is before ordering.
Fufu
Fermented cassava dough, soft and sticky, eaten with soups.
How to have it: Pinch off a piece with your right hand and dip it into pepper soup or palm butter.
Ginger beer
Homemade fiery ginger drink, sweetened and served cold.
How to have it: Sold in reused bottles by street vendors; the Liberian version is very strong and spicy.
What to eat next door
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Questions
What food is Liberia famous for?
Palm butter (rich stew of palm nut cream with meat or fish, spooned over rice) comes first on our list, followed by Jollof rice, Pepper soup, Fufu and Ginger beer.
What is the national dish of Liberia?
Ask ten people and you get several answers. The dish we put first for Liberia is Palm butter: rich stew of palm nut cream with meat or fish, spooned over rice. Also look for cassava leaf and potato greens stews; cookshops serve them with rice at lunch.
Which dishes in Liberia are vegetarian?
Two of the five on this page are vegetarian as usually made: Fufu and Ginger beer. Recipes vary, so ask about stock, lard or fish sauce.
What do people drink in Liberia?
Ginger beer: homemade fiery ginger drink, sweetened and served cold.
How reliable is this list?
The dishes are hand-picked from general knowledge in the Explo app, where you can also tick off the ones you have tried. Recipes vary by region and by family, so take it as a starting point.
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Get ExploDishes are hand-picked from general knowledge in the Explo app, with links to Wikipedia. Recipes and names vary by region.