What Is Ndakala? The Congolese Dried Fish Explained

Few things carry the memory of a Congolese kitchen like a pan of ndakala crackling in hot oil, the small dried fish crisping up and filling the room with a deep, salty scent. It is an everyday food, the sort that stretches a meal and feeds a table without costing much, and for many families it is one of the first flavours of childhood. A handful of these little fish turns plain rice or a mound of fufu into something warming and complete.

There is a quiet pride in ndakala too. It is humble food, but it is generous, and cooking it in a flat far from Kinshasa or the shores of Lake Tanganyika is a way of holding on to something real. To set down a dish of it, the fish glistening with onion and chilli, is to share the taste of home with whoever is at the table.

What Ndakala Actually Is

Ndakala, also written ndagala and known by the Swahili name dagaa, is a tiny whole dried fish that is a staple of Congolese cooking. The fish themselves are small freshwater species, roughly the size of a sardine or an anchovy, netted from the great lakes of Central Africa such as Lake Tanganyika and then dried in the sun to preserve them. Because they are so small, they are eaten whole, bones and all, which is part of what makes them such a good and affordable source of protein and calcium.

The name is often used with real affection, a nod to just how many of these little fish arrive in a single serving. Dried and salty, ndakala keeps well and travels well, which has made it a dependable everyday food across the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the wider region. It sits comfortably among the other staples of Congolese food, lending a deep, savoury note to simple meals.

Ndakala Versus Makayabu

It is worth being clear about the difference between ndakala and makayabu, because both are dried fish yet they are not the same thing at all. Ndakala is tiny whole dried fish, eaten complete with its head and bones, and it is used by the handful. Makayabu, by contrast, is large salted and cured cod, sold in big pieces that are soaked to soften and remove some of the salt before cooking.

In other words, the two work quite differently in the kitchen. Ndakala is scattered into a hot pan and fried crisp, or dropped into a simmering sauce, while makayabu is treated more like a joint of preserved fish that needs soaking and flaking. If you have cooked with salted fish elsewhere, ndakala also differs from stockfish, the hard air-dried whitefish popular in other African kitchens, which is larger and stiffer and needs long soaking of its own.

How Ndakala Is Made and Served

There are two classic ways to cook ndakala. The first is to fry it. The dried fish is rinsed, then fried in a little hot oil with sliced onion and fresh or dried chilli until it turns crisp and golden, seasoned simply and served as a savoury, salty topping. The second is to simmer it into a sauce, softening the fish in oil with onion, tomato and sometimes greens or aubergine until everything melds into a rich, spoonable relish. Either way, the fish is eaten whole, so the bones soften into the dish rather than being picked out.

Ndakala is almost always served with something to soak up its salt and savour, most often fufu, the soft cassava dough that is a mainstay of Congolese meals, or plain rice, or a plate of cassava leaves. As with any fish this is an allergen worth flagging for guests who need to avoid it, and because ndakala is naturally salty it is best to taste before adding more salt to the pan. Simple, filling and full of flavour, it is a dish made for sharing over a relaxed meal.

Where to Buy Ndakala in the UK

In Britain, ndakala is sold by African food shops, usually dried and bagged, and sometimes listed under its other names such as ndagala or dagaa. Shops serving Congolese and East African customers are the most reliable places to find it, and the same shops will stock the onion, chilli, tomato and cassava products you need to cook and serve it. Because it is dried it keeps well in the cupboard, so it is an easy staple to have on hand. You can find African food stores near you to see what is nearby.