What Is Matemba? The Zimbabwean Dried Fish Relish Explained
Matemba is small Zimbabwean dried fish, fried crisp then cooked with onion and tomato into a savoury relish eaten with sadza. Here is what it is.
African Stores Editorial Team
The short answer
Matemba is a small dried freshwater fish from Zimbabwe, eaten as a savoury relish with sadza, the country's staple maize porridge. The little whole fish are rinsed, fried until crisp, then simmered with onion and tomato, and sometimes a spoon of peanut butter, into a salty, satisfying dish. It is a budget-friendly, protein-rich everyday meal that turns a handful of dried fish into a full, warming plate. In the UK matemba and the ingredients to cook it are sold by African food shops, which you can find near you on African Stores.
What to remember
- Matemba is a small dried freshwater fish eaten as a relish with sadza.
- The fish are rinsed, fried until crisp, then cooked with onion and tomato.
- Some cooks add peanut butter for a richer, thicker sauce.
- It is salty and savoury, an affordable and protein-rich everyday dish.
- Matemba is similar in use to kapenta but is a different, larger fish.
The smell of matemba frying, salty and rich, is one of those kitchen smells that says home to many Zimbabweans. It is humble food, a small bag of dried fish stretched into a meal for the whole family, and yet it carries real comfort. Served alongside a mound of steaming sadza, it is the taste of an ordinary good dinner, of thrift and care and a table where nobody goes hungry.
There is quiet resourcefulness in matemba, in the old wisdom of drying fish to keep it, and in the way onion, tomato and a little peanut butter turn something plain into something people genuinely look forward to. To cook matemba far from home in Britain is to keep that everyday tradition alive, and to share a plate of it with sadza is to pass on a small, honest piece of Zimbabwean cooking.
What Matemba Actually Is
Matemba is a small dried freshwater fish that is a well loved part of Zimbabwean home cooking. The little fish are dried whole to preserve them, which concentrates their flavour and makes them salty and deeply savoury. Rather than being eaten as a fish course in the way a larger fish might be, matemba is cooked into a relish, the general term in Zimbabwe for the flavoursome dish that is eaten alongside sadza, the thick maize porridge that anchors most meals.
People sometimes confuse matemba with kapenta, and the two are used in very similar ways, but they are different fish. Kapenta is a small dried sardine, while matemba is a small dried bream or similar freshwater fish. Both are dried, both are cooked into a savoury relish, and both are prized as an affordable source of protein, so it is easy to see why they are mentioned together. If you know kapenta, matemba will feel familiar, and it sits comfortably within the wider world of Zimbabwean food.
How Matemba Is Made and Served
Cooking matemba begins with a good rinse, since the dried fish carries salt and needs cleaning before it goes in the pan. The fish are then fried, often until crisp, which brings out their savoury depth and gives them a pleasing texture. From there a simple sauce is built by frying onion and tomato, and the fish are returned to the pan to simmer so the flavours come together. Some cooks stir in a spoonful of peanut butter, which is common across Zimbabwean cooking, to make the sauce thicker, richer and a little nutty.
Matemba is almost always served with sadza, which is rolled into small pieces by hand and used to scoop up the fish and sauce. It makes a complete, filling meal from very little, which is a large part of its appeal. Because the fish is already salty, cooks tend to season the dish carefully and let the natural flavour of the matemba lead. The result is honest, warming food, the sort of everyday relish that turns up often on family tables.
Why Matemba Matters in Zimbabwe
Dried fish like matemba has long been a practical, nourishing food in Zimbabwe and the wider Southern African region. Drying preserves the catch so it keeps without refrigeration, and a small quantity goes a long way, which makes matemba a genuinely affordable way to put protein on the plate. For many households it is a reliable everyday relish rather than a special-occasion dish, valued precisely because it is cheap, filling and full of flavour.
It also reflects the resourcefulness at the heart of much Zimbabwean home cooking, where simple, well kept ingredients are turned into satisfying meals. A handful of dried fish, an onion, a tomato and a little peanut butter become a dish the whole family enjoys with sadza. That combination of thrift, nourishment and real flavour is why matemba remains a firm favourite.
Where to Buy Matemba in the UK
Matemba is sold dried, so it keeps well and is easy to stock up on when you find it. African food shops that serve Zimbabwean and Southern African customers are the place to look, often alongside kapenta, dried beans, maize meal for sadza and peanut butter. Buy the dried fish, an onion, a tomato and a jar of peanut butter if you like a richer sauce, and you have everything you need for the dish. You can find African food stores near you to see which shops nearby carry matemba and the ingredients to cook it.
Frequently asked questions
What is matemba?
Matemba is a small dried freshwater fish from Zimbabwe, eaten as a savoury relish with sadza. The little whole fish are rinsed, fried until crisp, then cooked with onion and tomato, and sometimes peanut butter, into a salty, satisfying dish. It is a budget-friendly, protein-rich everyday meal.
What does matemba taste like?
Matemba is salty and deeply savoury, with a concentrated fishy flavour from being dried and a crisp texture from frying. Cooked with onion and tomato it becomes a rich, moreish relish, and a spoon of peanut butter makes it thicker and a little nutty. Because it is naturally salty, it is usually seasoned with care.
How is matemba cooked?
The dried fish are first rinsed to clean off salt, then fried, often until crisp. A simple sauce is made by frying onion and tomato, the fish are added back, and it is all simmered together. Some cooks stir in peanut butter for a richer sauce. It is served with sadza, which is used to scoop up the fish and sauce.
What is the difference between matemba and kapenta?
Matemba and kapenta are both small dried fish cooked into a savoury relish in Zimbabwe, and they are used in very similar ways. The main difference is the fish itself: kapenta is a small dried sardine, while matemba is a small dried bream or similar freshwater fish. Both are affordable, protein-rich and eaten with sadza.
Where can I buy matemba in the UK?
Matemba is sold dried by African food shops that serve Zimbabwean and Southern African customers, often alongside kapenta, maize meal and peanut butter. Because it is dried, it keeps well and is easy to stock up on. African Stores lists African and Caribbean food shops across the UK, so you can find one near you that stocks it.