African Platter Map: Baasto Pasta With Meat Sauce (Somali)

Somalia also called Somali is a country located at the horn of the African continent, which has the 43rd largest land mass, blessed with loads of plateaus and highlands, and is abundant in countless mineral resources. Although going through certain economic issues, food is a common language that turns heads anywhere and makes the tummy stand at attention.

One of the most popular meals in Somali across homes and restaurants, is the very delicious ‘Baasto Pasta with Meat Sauce’ or any other sauce, but today we would be discussing it with the meat sauce. So what would we be needing;
Ingredients
1 pack pasta (preferably spaghetti)
2g minced meat (beef – sometimes finely diced beef is used instead)
1 finely diced onion
1 green bell pepper
4 cloves of minced garlic
1 can of diced tomatoes
A handful of chopped cilantro leaves
Salt to taste
1 tsp xawaash (somali spice)
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp vegetables spices
2 tbsp olive oil
Water for pasta
Directions
Preparing the blended items first, green pepper, cilantro, onion and garlic. In a pot add oil add the mixture, minced meat, spices, diced tomatoes, tomato paste and mix well. Stir continuously until thoroughly absorbed. This should take about 10 minutes. Reduce to low heat and simmer for about 10 minutes to allow the sauce to thicken. Stir and remove from the pot.
Preparing the pasta
Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil Add the pasta, stir occasionally to ensure the pasta doesn’t stick to the pan. Cook the pasta until it is ‘al dente’, which means the pasta should be cooked, but firm to the teeth when you bite it. Drain the pasta, but don’t rinse as this will wash away the starch which helps absorb the sauce. Serve the meat sauce on the pasta.

Make sure to tryout this recipe and give a feedback on how helpful this article was.
(content credit for cooking steps; gratifyingcooking.com )