~566 cal · 19g protein · 76g carbs · 25g fat (estimated, per serving)
🍽️
Mound of white maize porridge beside peanut-stewed greens
🇿🇲 Lusaka
In Zambia a meal without nshima is barely a meal at all. The stiff white maize porridge is scooped by hand and dipped into ifisashi — greens cooked down in a sauce of pounded groundnuts and tomato — a pairing that has fed the Copperbelt and the villages alike for generations.
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Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
Ingredients
Serves 4 —
•
2 cups white maize meal (mealie meal)
•
1 lb collard or pumpkin greens, shredded
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3/4 cup raw peanuts, ground (or peanut butter)
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2 + 1 tomato and onion, chopped
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to taste salt
Instructions
1
For the ifisashi, simmer the tomato and onion until soft, then add the greens and a cup of water.
2
Stir in the ground peanuts (or seeds) and cook 15 minutes until thick and creamy; season.
3
For the nshima, bring 3 cups water to a boil and whisk in half the meal to make a thin porridge.
4
Cook 5 minutes, then add the rest of the meal a little at a time, stirring hard with a wooden spoon until very stiff.
5
Scoop the nshima into mounds and serve hot with the peanut greens for dipping.
Lusaka home cooking.
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🌏 While it simmers — know your destination
📍
Lusaka. Where every plate is anchored by a mound of nshima.
🗺️
Zambia. Copperbelt country built around a bowl of nshima.
🌍
Africa. Fifty-four countries of tagines, stews, and fire-kissed grills.
The story behind this dish is up top — worth a read while the pot works.
👩🍳
Richard Moore & Kelsey Tucker
Recipes cooked, tested, and researched by the creators of Spin the Globe. How we build our recipes →
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