For our virtual visit to Mozambique, we cook some matapa de mandioca, a stew made from cassava leaves, coconut cream and peanuts. Read on to learn more about Mozambique cuisine and its historical influences or jump straight to the recipe.

Jump to Recipe

Mozambique Cuisine

Mozambique is located on the eastern coast of the African continent just opposite Madagascar. With its long, dominating coastline, seafood has naturally become an integral part of Mozambique cuisine. Apart from seafood, the country’s location along the shores of the Indian Ocean has set its mark in the spices used and has introduced many dishes. During the 10th century, the Arabic spice trade introduced a wide range of spices from South Asia. In the 15th century, Portuguese explorers spear-headed by Vasco de Gama set up colonies in Mozambique on their route to India and eventually conquered the entire country. (Mozambique remained a Portuguese colony up until 1975.) During Portuguese colonialism, spices continued to flow through Mozambique and Portuguese dishes were introduced and mingled with the precolonial traditions and local produce.

Today, the Mozambique cuisine shows the marks of all of these historical influences. The food is centred around local grains, tubers and vegetables like black-eyed peas, coconut, peanuts, and cashew nuts. Colonialism introduced new-world ingredients like cassava, corn, and chilies while the spice trade has brought many of the warm spices commonly associated with India, like cinnamon, cardamom and coriander.

Mozambique dishes

The Mozambique kitchen is full of interesting dishes showing the many historical influences from the past 1000 years (Nomadic Vegan, Nomads Unveiled, Travel Food Atlas). You can find Portuguese dishes like feijoada, a Brazilian bean and sausage stew, and its relative dobrada (beans and tripe), and shrimp-filled rissois (type of filled, savoury, fried pastry). Samosas, badjias (deep-fried vegetable fritters), roti, and vegetable curries reveal the hand of India. While researching this post, I found the book Cuisines of Portuguese Encounters by Cherie Hamilton. The book is available for free at the Open Library (such a great resource) and features recipes from former Portuguese colonies, such as Angola, Brazil, Mozambique, and Goa. Here I found recipes like baked peanut balls with peri-peri sauce, samosas, beet salad and seafood omelettes.

Unsurprisingly, Mozambique cuisine also features many dishes that link the country to its East and South African neighbours. Peri-peri sauce made from the small, red peri-peri chili, garlic and vinegar is served along many dishes. Xima is a corn-based swallow, starch-based side dishes eaten throughout Africa, like South African pap, Nigerian fufu, or Angolan funje. Peanuts feature heavily, both in savoury dishes and desserts like the fudge etoritory or lato balls. Cassava, both root and leaves, are frequently used in stews and, in the case of the roots, plain boiled as a side.

Matapa de mandioca

Often just called matapa, matapa de mandioca is made from cassava leaves (mandioca in Portuguese). This popular stew follows a simple, well-established recipe with few variations. The basic set of ingredients is cassava leaves, shrimp, toasted and ground peanuts and coconut milk (Afro Cuisine Magazine, Chef’s pencil, Tastes from the road, Tudo Gostoso, The Afrikan Store, Explorer’s Kitchen). Many cooks also add onions and garlic and sometimes chili peppers, such as the popular peri-peri pepper or some dried chili flakes. In some cases, the shrimp are boiled first and their cooking water is then used to boil the cassava leaves before adding coconut milk.

To prepare matapa, the cassava leaves are crushed in a large mortar or a food processor. The onion and garlic, if using, is then fried in some oil before the cassava leaves and coconut milk are added. The leaves are simmered in the coconut milk until the leaves are cooked and the stew comes together.

Serve the matapa with white rice or xima, a Mozambican corn porridge similar to other African swallows (fufu, pap, funje etc.). It is very easy to make (simmer corn flour withs alt until a porridge forms; recipe) and reminds me of Italian polenta.

Replacing cassava leaves

Depending on where you live, it might be hard to find cassava leaves, especially fresh ones. You can also try to find frozen cassava leaves in any African store (I’d try any African subregion store, whatever is in your area) or a Latin American store. Cassava, also known as yucca, is originally from Brazil and used in South America as well. If you can’t find cassava, you can substitute any large, tough leafy green, such as kale or Swiss chard.

How to make a vegan matapa

To make a vegan matapa recipe, you can either omit or replace the shrimp. Basic matapa is common and made without shrimp (Mozambique Experience, Around the World, The Afrikan Store) though a lot of cooks seem to add a small amount for a seafood-y twist.

For this virtual visit to Mozambique, I decided to prepare the basic matapa without any shrimp substitute. But if you are looking for a vegan shrimp substitute, you can try frying some tofu on the side and adding it at the end. Or, similar to how we replaced conch when visiting Honduras, you can use king oyster mushroom and add some seaweed like nori or kombu to the stew while it is simmering. There’s also a ton of vegan shrimp products out there but I haven’t tried any of them.

Conclusion

The vegan matapa had a great creamy flavour, and I loved the addition of peanuts. I think there should be a bit more chili in the recipe so I served the matapa with chili-flakes. The matapa reminds me a lot of Trinidiadian callallo (taro leaves simmered in coconut cream) or the palusami we made when visiting Kiribati. To enjoy the matapa in a more authentic fashion, I made some xima to go along with the dish. Xima is fast and easy, just simmer corn flour until a porridge forms. Alternately, you can enjoy the matapa with rice.

I will definitively make matapa again. If not as a main dish, then as an easy side dish along other regional dishes.

If you don’t want to miss the next post, you can subscribe to my email list and I will send you an alert when the post is live.

Vegan matapa recipe

Vegan matapa

Mozambican matapa is a simple, rich and delicious stew made from cassava leaves, coconut cream and peanuts.

Course Main Course

Cuisine East African, Mozambique

Keyword leafy greens, stew

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 20

Servings 2

Ingredients

1 tsp canola oil
50 g onion
2 cloves garlic
150 g cassava leaves or other leafy greens see note
150 mL coconut milk
50 g raw peanuts, without shell ~100 mL, see note
salt to taste
fresh chili or chili flakes to taste optional

Instructions

Trim and roughly chop the leafy greens. Mince finely in a food processor or blender. You might have to add some water to allow the blender to work.
Toast the peanuts and grind them to a powder in a blender or food processor. Be careful not to turn them into peanut butter.
Chop the onion and mince the garlic.
Heat oil in a pot and sweat the onion and garlic until translucent.
Add the pureed leafy greens, chili, salt, coconut cream and peanut powder.
Simmer for 20+ minutes.
Serve with rice or xima, a Mozambican corn flour porridge.

Notes

Cassava leaves: Depending on where you live, cassava leaves can be hard to find. Instead, some tougher leafy greens, such as kale or chard can be used.

Peanuts: you can take a shortcut and buy dry-roasted peanuts and grind those or even peanut butter.

Disclaimer

I will try to cook one or more dishes for every country on the planet. Obviously, I am not from 99.5% of the countries. Best case scenario is that I know someone from the country and have visited it myself. Most of the time though, my research is based on different websites and books, without me ever tasting the real dish (which often is non-vegan anyway).
In other words: these recipes are not authentic but I hope you will enjoy my renditions and veganized versions of this small sample of the world’s different cuisines.