National Dishes of the World

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Matapa
Photo: PrestigiousSwazi, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

main dish vegan for the recipe below

Matapa

Pounded cassava leaves cooked with ground groundnuts and coconut milk, often with prawns or crab.

Eaten in: Mozambique traditional

Prep
15 min
Cooking
1 h 30 min
Total
1 h 45 min
Servings
4

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About the dish

Matapa is one of Mozambique’s best-loved dishes, especially along the coast. Young cassava leaves are pounded in a mortar and then cooked for a long time with ground groundnuts, garlic and coconut milk until they form a thick, green, creamy sauce with a nutty flavour. The long cooking is essential, as it removes harmful compounds from the leaves. Coastal versions add prawns or crab, while inland it is often eaten plain. It is served with rice or maize xima.

Main ingredients

  • cassava leaves
  • groundnuts
  • coconut milk
  • onion
  • garlic

The “vegetarian” and “vegan” labels refer to the recipe shown, not to every version of the dish.

We show dishes associated with a country, not official national dishes; “national dish” and “culinary symbol” are used only with a basis. What do the labels mean?

More: Wikipedia (en)

Recipe

Matapa

https://foodmap.ominuvo.com/dish/matapa

Ingredients

4 servings

4 servings

Allergens in the ingredients: nuts and peanuts. Based on the ingredients of this recipe – no substitute for checking labels.

Method

  1. Thaw the cassava leaves and put them in a pot with the water, chopped onion and crushed garlic.

  2. Simmer, covered, over low heat for about an hour, stirring occasionally and adding water if needed.

  3. Meanwhile grind the groundnuts to a fine powder and mix them with half the coconut milk.

  4. Stir the nut mixture into the leaves and cook for 15 minutes, stirring often so nothing sticks.

  5. Add the rest of the coconut milk, season with salt and cook for another 10–15 minutes until thick and creamy.

  6. Serve with rice or xima.

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