Zimbabwe
Sadza and slow-grilled beef, mopane worms and Mazoe orange, where Great Zimbabwe's stones still stand.
The heart of a Zimbabwean meal is sadza, a thick, mild cornmeal paste that you break off and use to scoop up whatever's beside it — a stew, greens, a piece of grilled beef. It's cheap, filling and comforting, the plate almost every Zimbabwean grew up on, and a peanut-butter version, sadza nedovi, turns the greens rich and nutty.
Zimbabweans are proud of their naturally-raised beef, and the braai is where it shines, alongside coils of spiced boerewors and strips of biltong for the road. The wilder notes are local: dried madora mopane worms fried until crunchy, tiny kapenta from Lake Kariba, roasted street corn. And the drinks are pure nostalgia — cartons of thick, sour Chibuku sorghum beer, and above all Mazoe orange crush, a cordial with near-legendary status in every Zimbabwean kitchen. Straightforward, hearty, deeply loved home food.
- Sadza (thick cornmeal staple)
- Sadza nedovi (sadza with peanut greens)
- Nyama (meat & veg relish)
- Madora (dried mopane worms)
- Boerewors (spiced farmer's sausage)
- Chibuku (sorghum beer)
- Mazoe (orange cordial)
