As Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting kicks off, visitors in the country may have to ensure they taste Rwanda’s centuries old specialty Brochettes or easily known as Mchomo in other East African countries.
Meat (or other food) was first cooked in Africa tens or hundreds of thousands of years ago — and Africans have been roasting meat ever since. Roasting meat is common at various celebrations.
For example in the picture above, President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda is seen roasting brochettes for his soldiers at a western regional military barracks.
“I met officers and men of the 2nd Division at Makenke Barracks in Mbarara City. I came to thank them for doing their duty well and to motivate them. Asante Sana,” Museveni said on Saturday as he carefully rolled the brochette on a highrise charcoal stole.
In French-speaking Africa, sticks of roasted meat are called brochettes, (from the French word for “skewer”), and they are often sold by vendors on city streets.
In Rwanda the brochettes are a common requirement at every bar across the country and in every hotel. The brochettes are served with popular accompaniments like irish-potato fries and roasted bananas.
In rural setting brochette costs between Rwf300-700 while in semi urban bars a single brochette costs Rwf1000-3000 depending on the hangout of your choice.
There are lots of ways to prepare brochettes. Lamb (meat and kidneys) is preferred in Northern Africa; in Sub-Saharan Africa various meats are used. The basic process is to marinate the meat, thread it on a skewer, and grill it over a fire.
There are no quantities for the ingredients in these recipes: how you make your marinade depends on how much meat you’re cooking and what ingredients you like. (However, as a guide, the ingredients are listed by volume from largest to smallest.)
Grill for 1 hour to 1 ½ hours, or until the beef reaches an internal temperature of 125 degrees F, rotating once 180 degrees.
