🍢 SNACK
Maputi aneNzungu (Zimbabwean Roasted Maize and Peanuts)
Dried white maize kernels dry-roasted in a heavy pan until golden, then roasted on with raw peanuts until charred in spots and finished with a splash of salty water.
Zimbabwean · easy · serves 6
prep 5 min · cook 25 min
~247 cal · 11g protein · 14g carbs · 18g fat · 4g fiber · 3g sugars · 3g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Maputi are the salty maize snack eaten all over Zimbabwe. The ones sold in packets are popped under heat and pressure in a maputi cannon and come out light, a little like popcorn but more savoury and nutty. At home, maize will not pop that way, so the kernels are dry-roasted in a pan until they crack and turn golden. That roasted version, harder and crunchier, is called maputi too, or maputi akakangwa.
Roasted with nzungu, peanuts, it becomes one of the best loved traditional snacks in the country. It used to be made with people sitting around the fire, in a mugango, a heavy roasting pan kept for maputi, salted nzungu and other dry roasting, shaken over the flames or over hot coals. Today it is just as easily made in a heavy pan on the stove.
The maize goes in first because it takes longer, and the peanuts follow once the kernels are golden. A little salt dissolved in water is splashed over at the end; it steams off and leaves every kernel and nut lightly seasoned.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally vegetarian, vegan and gluten-, dairy-, egg- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 6
- 1 1/2 cups (about 270 g) dried white maize (corn) kernels, whole dried kernels, not popcorn
- 1 1/2 cups (about 220 g) raw shelled peanuts
- 1 tsp salt, or to taste
- 2 tbsp water
Instructions
- 1Put the maize kernels in a large, heavy-based dry pan over medium heat.✎ Chef’s noteVery dry maize roasts hard. For a softer crunch, soak the kernels for a few hours or overnight, then drain and pat them dry before roasting.
- 2Roast the maize, stirring often with a wooden spoon, for about 15 minutes, until the kernels are golden brown all over and some have cracked.
- 3Add the peanuts and keep roasting for 8 to 10 minutes more, stirring all the time, until the peanuts smell toasty and are charred in spots.✎ Chef’s noteThe peanuts take heat from the pan and from the hot maize, so keep them moving or they will burn before the inside is roasted.
- 4Dissolve the salt in the water and sprinkle it over the pan, standing back from the steam. Stir for a minute or two until everything is dry again.
- 5Tip onto a tray to cool a little and eat warm, or cool completely and keep in an airtight jar.
Zimbabwean home tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Harare. Sadza is made from maize, which is newer here than it tastes. Maize reached the region in the sixteenth century but only displaced finger millet, sorghum and pearl millet as the everyday grain during the twentieth, pushed by colonial milling and marketing. Those small grains are being planted again now for their drought resistance.
🗺️
Zimbabwe. Peanut butter is used as a cooking fat and a thickener rather than a spread, stirred into greens, pumpkin leaves and porridge, and it is the base of dovi, the peanut stew. Madora, the mopane worm, is dried and rehydrated or fried and eaten as a protein-dense snack, and it is farmed and traded seriously rather than as a curiosity.
🌍
Africa. Much of what reads as timeless African cooking is younger than the Atlantic crossings. Maize, cassava, groundnut, chilli and tomato all arrived from the Americas after 1500 and pushed older crops aside; millet, sorghum, teff, yam and fonio are the ones that were already here, and the map still shows the join.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Zimbabwe
BotaA soft, thin maize-meal breakfast porridge enriched with peanut butter and a little sugar.
Nyama ne SadzaBeef stewed with tomato and onion served with stiff maize sadza, the everyday heart of the Zimbabwean table.
Chikenduza (Candy Cakes)Soft, yeasted sweet cakes baked tall and finished with a bright pink glaze, a Zimbabwean bakery treat.
Browse all Zimbabwe recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Oven, Steamer.
Storing it: Best straight off the heat. Leftovers keep 2 to 3 days refrigerated and reheat well in a hot oven rather than the microwave.
Make it a Zimbabwe meal
MaheuDrink
Chikenduza (Candy Cakes)Dessert
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Cuisine
Diet
Frequently asked questions
What is Maputi aneNzungu (Zimbabwean Roasted Maize and Peanuts)?
Dried white maize kernels dry-roasted in a heavy pan until golden, then roasted on with raw peanuts until charred in spots and finished with a splash of salty water.
Where does Maputi aneNzungu (Zimbabwean Roasted Maize and Peanuts) come from?
Maputi aneNzungu (Zimbabwean Roasted Maize and Peanuts) is a Zimbabwean dish from Harare, Zimbabwe.
Can Maputi aneNzungu (Zimbabwean Roasted Maize and Peanuts) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Maputi aneNzungu (Zimbabwean Roasted Maize and Peanuts) recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions. Treat the substitutions as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Maputi aneNzungu (Zimbabwean Roasted Maize and Peanuts) safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we still count coconut as a tree nut to be cautious, although the FDA stopped listing it as one in 2025), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Maputi aneNzungu (Zimbabwean Roasted Maize and Peanuts) take to make?
About 30 minutes total (5 minutes prep, 25 minutes cooking), serving 6.
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