Makayabu

Ingredients

Fish

• 800 gsalted dried cod
• or any salted dried fish
• water, for soaking

The pot

• 3onions, sliced
• 2green peppers, sliced
• 4tomatoes, chopped
• 3 tablespoonstomato purée
• 5garlic cloves, crushed
• 5 tablespoonsoil
• or red palm oil
• 1stock cube
• 2chillies, chopped, optional
• juice of 1 lemon
• black pepper

Sometimes added

• a handful of chopped greens
• a little water or stock

To serve

• chikwanga or fufu
• rice
• pondu, cassava leaves
• pilipili, chilli sauce

Directions

1. Salt cod appears across West and Central Africa. Salt fish keeps without refrigeration. Salt cod is preserved in heavy salt. It must be soaked thoroughly before use.
2. Rinse the surface salt off first. Cover it with plenty of cold water. Give it at least twenty-four hours. Boil a small piece and taste it. It should be seasoned rather than harsh. Salt cannot be removed after cooking. Rehydrated salt cod is firm and flaky.
3. Rinse the salt fish under cold water. Rub off any surface salt crystals. Put it all into a large clean bowl. Cover it well with cold water. Use a bowl large enough for changes. Keep it refrigerated while soaking. Warm soaking water spoils the fish. Change the water every six hours. Cut very thick pieces down first. Boil a small piece and taste it.
4. Soak it longer if it is still harsh. Do not guess at this stage at all. Drain the soaked fish thoroughly. Pat every piece completely dry. Check it very carefully for bones. Salt cod carries fine hard bones. They do not soften in cooking. Pull them all out with tweezers. Cut the fish into serving pieces. Heat the oil in a wide heavy pan.
5. Fry the pieces for about four minutes a side. They should be golden and lightly crisp. Lift the fried fish out onto a plate. Keep it warm while you make the sauce.
6. Heat more oil in the same pan. Add the sliced onions to the pan. Cook them for a good ten minutes. Add the sliced green peppers to it. Cook them for five more minutes. Add the crushed garlic to them. Add the chillies if you want heat. Cook them for two more full minutes.
7. Add the chopped tomatoes to the pan. Add the tomato purée along with them. Crumble the stock cube into it. Cook them down for about ten minutes. The tomato must cook right down. Oil should separate at the edges. Raw tomato taste should be entirely gone. Return the fried fish to the pan. Spoon the sauce over the pieces.
8. Let it simmer for ten more minutes. The fish takes up the sauce as it sits. Add the raw soaked fish to it. Simmer it gently for twenty minutes. Taste it before adding any salt. It will usually need none at all.
9. Add black pepper to taste as well. Squeeze in lemon juice to lift it. Taste first and salt only if needed. Serving it is always done piping hot. Set the fish and sauce on a platter. Serve chikwanga or fufu alongside. Serve pondu alongside it as well. Put pilipili chilli sauce on the table. It keeps three days refrigerated.

Technique

• Salted cod came through Atlantic trade: North Atlantic cod was salted, dried and shipped to tropical colonies in quantity, becoming established in the local diet. The same pattern is documented across West and Central Africa and the Caribbean, since salt fish keeps without refrigeration, is light for its protein and was cheap provisioning for long voyages and for colonies.
• The soaking is the step that cannot be skipped: rinse the surface salt off, cover with plenty of cold water, keep it refrigerated and change the water every six hours for at least a full day. Test by boiling a small piece and tasting it, since salt cannot be removed after cooking and thick pieces need longer than thin ones.
• A little salt fish flavours a great deal of starch, which is the economic logic of it: one small piece carries a whole plate of cassava and stretches a meal considerably.

Substitutions

• Any salted dried fish works in place of cod and is used across the region.
• Red palm oil in place of plain oil gives a deeper colour and flavour.

Variations

• It is fried for crisp browned pieces or stewed for softer fish in sauce, and both are made.
• Some cooks leave the skin on for texture and others pull it off for cleaner flakes.
• It is served with chikwanga, fufu or rice, and with pondu alongside.

History

Salted fish imported through Atlantic trade, soaked and cooked with tomato and onion; its saltiness carries a whole plate of cassava.

Frequently asked questions

What is Makayabu?

Makayabu is a main from DR Congo: salted cod fried or stewed with peppers and onion. Salted fish imported through Atlantic trade, soaked and cooked with tomato and onion; its saltiness carries a whole plate of cassava.

How long does Makayabu take to make?

Makayabu takes 20 minutes plus soaking of preparation and 40 minutes of cooking. The recipe makes serves 6. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Makayabu?

Yes, within limits. Any salted dried fish works in place of cod and is used across the region. Red palm oil in place of plain oil gives a deeper colour and flavour.

What is the most important thing to get right in Makayabu?

Salt cod appears across West and Central Africa. Salt fish keeps without refrigeration. Salt cod is preserved in heavy salt. It must be soaked thoroughly before use.