Utazi Leaves substitute

Best substitute

Arugula (Rocket), Finely Shredded

Use the same amount by volume as the utazi leaves you are replacing

Best for nkwobi

Different taste

Shredded arugula is the best widely available swap at 1:1, with dandelion greens a close second if you want a deeper, longer-lasting bitterness. Radicchio or Belgian endive works where crunch is welcome, such as abacha. Whatever you use, slice it hair-thin and use as little as the recipe says, because utazi is a bitter seasoning and not a leafy vegetable.

Other utazi leaves substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2Dandelion Greens
Different texture
Use the same amount by volume, sliced very thin
Closer than arugula to utazi's sustained, vegetal bitterness that holds up through cooking.
What changes
The leaves are tougher and more fibrous, so thin slicing matters more here than with any other option.
Best for
nkwobi, isi ewu, pepper soup, cooked dishes where the bitterness needs to survive heat
Earthier and slightly more mineral than utazi. Older, larger leaves are aggressively bitter, so taste one raw before you decide how much to use.
3Radicchio or Belgian Endive, Shredded
Different texture
About ¾ the volume of utazi called for
A clean, straightforward bitterness with no herbal or peppery distraction, plus a firm crunch.
What changes
That crunch is a bonus in abacha and other cold or barely warm dishes and a drawback in soup.
Best for
abacha (African salad), nkwobi, ugba, cold and room-temperature dishes
Radicchio bleeds pink into pale dishes and turns limp and drab if you cook it. Endive is milder, so lean toward the full volume with endive and less with radicchio.
4Bitterleaf (Onugbu), Washed
Taste and texture differ
About half the volume of utazi
The other bitter green of the same cuisine, sold frozen and pre-washed at African grocers.
What changes
It gets you a genuinely West African bitterness and is easy to find where utazi is not.
Best for
nkwobi, pepper soup, cooked soups
Deeper, muskier and more assertively bitter than utazi, and it is a cooking green rather than a finishing garnish, so it wants a few minutes in the pot. Buy the washed kind; unwashed bitterleaf needs repeated squeezing in water and is savagely bitter otherwise.
5Mustard Greens, Shredded
Taste and texture differ
Use the same amount by volume
Bitterness plus a sinus-clearing pungency, which reads as intensity in the right way even though the specific note is wrong.
What changes
Better in cooked dishes than raw ones because heat tames the mustard heat into something rounder.
Best for
pepper soup, cooked soups, stews with rich meat
The mustard sharpness is not part of utazi's profile and can dominate a delicate dish. Use young leaves rather than big mature ones.
6Watercress Plus a Little Citrus Zest (Least-Bad Garnish)
Different taste
Use the same amount watercress by volume, plus ¼ teaspoon grated grapefruit or bitter orange zest per cup
Be clear that this is a stand-in for the effect rather than the ingredient.
What changes
Watercress brings a fresh peppery green bite and the zest supplies a bitter, aromatic edge, which together approximate what utazi does at the finish of a rich dish.
Best for
nkwobi, isi ewu, garnishing rich palm-oil dishes
There is no true replacement for utazi's specific bitterness, and nothing on a Western shelf tastes like it. This combination gives you the function, not the flavour, and a dish named for utazi will taste noticeably different.

What is Utazi Leaves?

Utazi Leaves is Utazi, also called arokeke and known botanically as Gongronema latifolium, is a heart-shaped West African vine leaf with a sharp, sustained bitterness, used in small amounts as a seasoning green rather than as a vegetable.

Cooking tips

Use far less than you would use of any ordinary leafy green. Utazi is a seasoning measured in teaspoons or a small handful of shreds per serving, and a spinach-sized quantity will make nkwobi genuinely inedible.
Slice it into hair-thin ribbons. The bitterness is released by cut surface, so fine shreds spread it evenly through the dish instead of giving you a few overwhelming mouthfuls.
Add it at the end or off the heat when it is acting as a garnish. Twenty minutes of simmering in pepper soup pulls the bitterness into the whole pot and turns the broth harsh.
If you have overshot the bitterness, do not add sugar. Add fat and salt, which is exactly how these dishes are balanced in the first place: another spoon of palm oil, a spoonful of ground peanut, or a pinch more salt.
Do not confuse utazi with uziza. Utazi is heart-shaped and bitter and finishes rich dishes; uziza is peppery and aromatic and does an entirely different job.

Frequently asked questions

What does utazi taste like?

Sharply and cleanly bitter, with a slightly astringent, drying quality and a faint herbal aroma underneath. The bitterness lingers rather than flashing and fading. That bitterness is functional: in nkwobi, isi ewu and pepper soup it cuts through palm oil and offal richness, which is why leaving it out makes those dishes feel heavier and flatter even though nothing tastes obviously missing.

Can I use spinach instead of utazi?

No, and this is worth being blunt about. Spinach has no bitterness at all, so it contributes green flecks and a little moisture and none of the function. If bitterness is unavailable to you, it is better to leave utazi out and add a squeeze of lime and extra black pepper to lift the richness than to add spinach and think the job is done.

Can I just leave it out?

Yes, in most dishes. Pepper soup, nkwobi and isi ewu are all perfectly edible without utazi; they simply taste richer, rounder and less balanced, and you lose the bitter counterpoint that makes a second helping appealing. Compensate with a little acid such as lime juice, and a firmer hand with the pepper.

Is utazi the same as bitterleaf?

No. They are different plants with different roles. Utazi (Gongronema latifolium) has smooth heart-shaped leaves, is generally used raw or added at the very end in small amounts, and has a cleaner bitterness. Bitterleaf (onugbu, Vernonia amygdalina) is a cooking green used in larger quantities in soups, and it is so bitter that it is traditionally washed and squeezed repeatedly before use.

Can I use dried utazi?

Yes, and dried or frozen utazi is what most cooks outside West Africa actually get. Frozen shredded leaves are the better of the two and go into the dish straight from the freezer. Dried utazi keeps its bitterness but loses the fresh herbal note, so it works fine in cooked pepper soup and poorly as a garnish on abacha or nkwobi where the leaf is meant to taste alive.

Related substitutes

More vegetables & aromatics substitutes

Utazi Leaves substitute

Other utazi leaves substitutes

2Dandelion Greens

3Radicchio or Belgian Endive, Shredded

4Bitterleaf (Onugbu), Washed

5Mustard Greens, Shredded

6Watercress Plus a Little Citrus Zest (Least-Bad Garnish)