Makande (pronounced, "ma-KAN-day") is a favorite dish among the Sukuma people, the main tribe living in the Lake Victoria Zone. Two weeks ago, Dada Fortunatha let me be her sous chef as she prepared makande for lunch at the home of our friends Hilkka and Pieter.
First- a blend of corn, pinto beans and peanuts are soaked and boiled for hours and hours.
Coconut milk is optional, but once you've had it with coconut milk it's hard to go back. Fortunatha grates the coconut by hand, then mixes it with water, straining with her fingers to squeeze out the milk. Very labor intensive!
Next--start the flavor base of onions, garlic, carrots and peppers. This is the base for many Tanzanian dishes.
Add the beans, then stir in two rounds of coconut milk, cook, cook, cook and...
...voila! Along with some greens and ugali (maize meal), this makes a typical Tanzanian meal.
My thanks to Head Chef Fortunatha!
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