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Matapa

Name: Matapa
Cuisine: Mozambican
Ingredients: 2 cups, chopped cassava leaves; 1 cup, ground peanuts; 1 cup coconut milk; 1 medium, chopped onion; 3 cloves, minced garlic; 200 grams crab or shrimp; 2 tablespoons oil; to taste salt

Matapa is a traditional Mozambican dish made from cassava leaves cooked with peanuts, coconut milk, and often crab or shrimp. It is rich, creamy, and deeply flavorful, reflecting the coastal agricultural heritage and seafood abundance of Mozambique. This dish is a staple in Mozambican households and a cultural emblem of communal meals.

8 ingredients

creamynuttyearthysavoryseafood

Culinary DNA Preview

Indigenous Mozambican70%

Portuguese30%

Ingredients

cassava leaves
2 cups, chopped
peanuts
1 cup, ground
coconut milk
1 cup
onion
1 medium, chopped
garlic
3 cloves, minced
crab or shrimp
200 grams
oil
2 tablespoons
salt
to taste

Method

Steps not available

Origin Story

Matapa originates from the coastal regions of Mozambique, where indigenous ingredients like cassava leaves and seafood are abundant, blending African agricultural practices with influences from Arab and Portuguese traders.

Culinary DNA

Ingredient ancestry breakdown

Indigenous Mozambican70%

ingredients+techniques

Portuguese30%

ingredient_origin

Techniques

sautéing simmering chopping

Stories about this dish

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Southern Africacuisines →Foodways connections →