Heri heri brings together tender cassava, green banana and sweet potato with savory salt cod and a boiled egg. It’s a hearty meal where each ingredient remains distinct; sambal and lime add heat and freshness at the table.
Heri heri is a Surinamese dish with Afro-Surinamese roots, known for combining boiled root vegetables and banana with salt cod and egg. The exact ingredients vary from household to household and depending on the occasion. This version deliberately keeps the components separate: it’s not a stew, but a plate where the cassava, green banana, sweet potato, fish and egg each retain their own flavor and texture. The dish is also connected to the commemoration of the abolition of slavery and Keti Koti; that context makes it more than just a practical meal.
Cassava is firm and mild, with a denser, somewhat drier texture than potato. Green banana becomes tender and soft when cooked, but generally stays a little firmer than ripe banana; sweet potato adds a soft, slightly sweet contrast. These differences are exactly why you shouldn’t put all the ingredients in the water at the same time. Cooking time depends on size and on whether the cassava is fresh or frozen, so check each piece individually with a fork. Cassava must be fully cooked. After cooking, remove the hard core if it is still in the pieces.
Salt cod is salted and dried fish, and it needs to be desalted before cooking. How long this takes depends on its thickness and salt content; preferably start the night before and leave the fish to soak, covered, in the refrigerator. Change the water a few times and taste a small piece after cooking before considering adding extra salt. Here, the fish is briefly fried with onion, garlic and tomato: this keeps it juicy and adds some freshness to its salty, savory flavor, without letting the fish disappear into a sauce. Store-bought desalted salt cod can shorten the preparation; just check whether it is already cooked.
Serve the components side by side and put out sambal and lime wedges, so everyone can adjust the heat and acidity to their liking. A fresh cucumber salad goes well alongside, but isn’t an essential part of the plate. Green banana is not the same as plantain; use unripe, green bananas for this combination. If you can’t find cassava, you can use extra sweet potato instead, though this will noticeably change the texture. Refrigerate leftovers, covered, within two hours and eat them within two days. Reheat the fish and vegetables thoroughly; a splash of water helps keep them from drying out.
Desalt the salt cod: rinse the fish and leave it to soak, covered, in plenty of cold water in the refrigerator for 8–12 hours. Change the water a few times. Drain and boil the fish in fresh water for 10 minutes. Drain again, leave to cool and flake the fish into large pieces; remove any bones.
Meanwhile, boil the eggs for 8–9 minutes, until hard-boiled. Cool them under cold water, peel and set aside.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the cassava and cook for 10 minutes. Peel the green bananas and cut them in half lengthwise. Add them to the pot with the sweet potato and cook everything for another 15–20 minutes, until each component is cooked through. Remove the pieces from the pot as soon as they are tender; cooking time can vary from piece to piece. Remove the hard core from the cassava if needed.
Heat the sunflower oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Fry the onion for 4 minutes, until translucent. Add the garlic and tomato and fry for 2 minutes. Stir in the salt cod and black pepper and fry for another 3–4 minutes, until the fish is thoroughly heated. Taste before adding any salt.
Divide the cassava, green banana and sweet potato among four plates. Add the salt cod and place an egg on each plate. Serve with sambal and lime wedges.
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