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Kizaca, a traditional Angolan meal that is also occasionally spelled quizaca or kisaca, is one of the nation’s most well-liked vegetarian foods. It is made with crushed peanuts and boiling cassava leaves. The meal is cooked with peanuts and cassava until it becomes thick and the peanuts turn into a smooth, nutty sauce.
Although kizaka is currently considered as the nation’s national dish, it has a fascinating historical background. Kizaka, like most Angolan cuisines, combines European influences with real African ingredients because Angola was a Portuguese colony for many years.
What’s more intriguing is that the principal component, cassava, was imported into Angola from Brazil, another former Portuguese colony, where it is regarded as an indigenous component. Kizaka com peixe, a dish cooked with fish, onions, and tomatoes, is the most popular type in Angola. Rice is typically included as a side dish.
The dish is widely consumed throughout Angola and is typically served as a side dish with dishes of meat or fish. Green cassava leaves can frequently be replaced with spinach.
Cassava leaves taste best after a few hours, so prepare ahead of time to give the flavors time to develop. White rice or chikuanga should be served with your quizaca.
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Kizaca
Ingredients
- 4 cups of pounded cassava leaves
- 1 dried fish soaked and shredded (optional)
- 2 medium onions roughly chopped
- 1 medium green pepper roughly chopped
- 1 medium aubergine roughly chopped
- ¾ cup of ground peanuts optional
- ½ cup of palm oil or regular oil
- 5 cups of water
- ½ sachet Benny Stock
- 2 garlic cloves crushed
- 1 thumbnail of ginger crushed
- ½ tsp. bicarbonate of soda
Instructions
- To begin, soak the dried fish in warm water, cover and set aside.
- Bring 4 cups of water to boil in a medium pot, add the pounded cassava leaves, soda and a pinch of salt. Cover and boil for 30 minutes.
- Peel and roughly chop the onions, pepper, aubergine, garlic and ginger. Place in a food processor and blitz until smooth.
- Stir the mixture into the cassava leaves along with the seasoning and let simmer for a further 15 minutes.
- Mix the groundnuts with a little bit of water to form a paste.
- Once the leaves have softened and thickened, add Benny Stock, dried fish and peanut paste to the pot.
- Reduce the heat and let simmer for 15 minutes.
