Ndagala

Ingredients

Fish

• 400 gdried ndagala, Lake Tanganyika sardines
• warm water, for soaking

To fry

• 500 mlvegetable oil, or palm oil

Stewed version

• 3 tbspoil
• 2onions, chopped
• 4tomatoes, chopped
• 2 tbsptomato paste
• 3garlic cloves, crushed
• 2hot chillies, chopped
• 1stock cube
• salt

To serve

• ugali, or boiled cassava
• boiled greens
• rice

Directions

1. Put them in a large bowl of warm water. Swirl them around with your hand. Lift them out into a colander rather than pouring. Repeat this two or three times with fresh water.
2. Keep going until you feel no grit at the bottom. For frying, a brief rinse is enough. Drain them thoroughly either way. Pat them dry on a cloth if you are frying them. Discard any that have gone soft or that smell off.
3. Heat the oil in a deep pan to about 180C. Test with one fish: it should sizzle hard immediately. Fry them in small batches so the oil stays hot. Fry them for two to three minutes only. They should turn deep golden and go crisp. Lift them onto a rack lined with paper.
4. Salt them lightly while hot if they need it. They are often salty enough already from the drying. Heat the oil in a wide pan over a medium heat. Add the chopped onions and cook them for eight minutes.
5. Add the garlic and the chopped chillies. Cook them for a further two minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and cook it until it darkens.
6. Add the chopped tomatoes and cook them down for eight minutes. Adding the fish is done gently. Add the drained soaked fish to the sauce. Turn them through carefully rather than stirring hard.
7. Add a little water and the stock cube. Simmer it for fifteen minutes. Taste it and adjust the salt, remembering the fish are salty. Serve the fried ones as they are, in a bowl. Serve the stewed ones with their sauce.

Technique

• Wash them in several changes of water, lifting them out so the sand stays behind.
• Do not soak them before frying, since waterlogged fish will not crisp.
• Discard any that smell of ammonia rather than of dried fish.

Substitutions

• Any small dried fish, such as Nigerian crayfish or Malawian usipa.
• Palm oil in place of vegetable oil, which is common.

Variations

• Fried crisp and eaten as a snack.
• Stewed in tomato and served with ugali.
• Cooked with groundnut paste, which some households do.

History

Lake Tanganyika sardines sun-dried on the shore at Rumonge and Nyanza-Lac, then fried or stewed as a cheap year-round protein.

Frequently asked questions

What is Ndagala?

Ndagala is a main from Burundi: small silver Tanganyika fish fried whole. Lake Tanganyika sardines sun-dried on the shore at Rumonge and Nyanza-Lac, then fried or stewed as a cheap year-round protein.

How long does Ndagala take to make?

Ndagala takes 20 min of preparation and 25 min of cooking. The recipe makes 4 servings. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Ndagala?

Yes, within limits. Any small dried fish, such as Nigerian crayfish or Malawian usipa. Palm oil in place of vegetable oil, which is common.

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

Put them in a large bowl of warm water. Swirl them around with your hand. Lift them out into a colander rather than pouring. Repeat this two or three times with fresh water.