Zanzibar Spice Recipes — Cook Like a Local at Home

You have been to the spice farms, breathed in the extraordinary aromas and brought home a bag of genuine Zanzibar spices. Now what?

Here are five authentic Zanzibari recipes that will bring the flavours and memories of the Spice Island to your kitchen at home.

Recipe 1 — Zanzibar Pilau Rice

Pilau is the soul of Zanzibari cooking — fragrant, spiced rice that transforms a simple meal into something extraordinary. Every family has their own recipe. This is a classic version.

Ingredients (serves 4):

• 2 cups basmati rice
• 3 cups water or chicken stock
• 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 large onion — finely sliced
• 4 cloves garlic — crushed
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger — grated
• 4 cardamom pods — lightly crushed
• 4 whole cloves
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• Half teaspoon black pepper — ground
• Salt to taste
• Optional: 300g chicken or beef — diced

Method: Heat oil in a heavy pot over medium heat. Add the sliced onion and cook until deep golden brown — this is important. Pale onions will not give you authentic pilau. Add garlic and ginger and cook for 2 minutes.

Add all the whole spices — cardamom, cloves, cinnamon stick and cumin seeds. Fry for 1 minute until fragrant. If using meat add it now and cook until browned.

Add the washed rice and stir to coat in the spiced oil. Add water or stock and salt. Bring to the boil, cover tightly and reduce to the lowest heat. Cook for 15-18 minutes without lifting the lid.

Remove from heat and rest for 5 minutes before serving. The whole spices are left in — guests push them to the side of their plate. They are not eaten.

Recipe 2 — Zanzibari Spiced Chai

Chai in Zanzibar is a ritual. This recipe makes the most warming and fragrant cup of tea you will ever drink.

Ingredients (serves 2):

• 2 cups water
• 1 cup full fat milk
• 2 teaspoons black tea leaves or 2 tea bags
• 3 cardamom pods — lightly crushed
• 1 small cinnamon stick
• 3 cloves
• 1 small piece fresh ginger — sliced
• Sugar to taste — Zanzibar chai is drunk sweet

Method: Combine water, milk and all spices in a small saucepan. Bring slowly to the boil. Add tea and simmer for 3-4 minutes. Strain into cups and add sugar to taste.

The spices can be adjusted to your preference — more cardamom for a more floral flavour, more ginger for heat and warmth.

Recipe 3 — Coconut Fish Curry — Mchuzi wa Samaki

The combination of fresh fish, coconut milk and Zanzibar spices creates a curry of extraordinary depth and warmth.

Ingredients (serves 4):

• 600g firm white fish — cut into chunks
• 400ml coconut milk
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 large onion — finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic — crushed
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger — grated
• 2 tomatoes — chopped
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon cumin — ground
• Half teaspoon coriander — ground
• 2 cardamom pods
• Salt and chilli to taste
• Fresh coriander to serve
• Lime juice

Method: Heat oil and fry onion until golden. Add garlic, ginger and all spices. Cook for 2 minutes. Add tomatoes and cook until they break down into a sauce — around 5 minutes.

Add coconut milk and bring to a gentle simmer. Add fish and cook for 8-10 minutes until just cooked through. Do not overcook the fish. Finish with fresh coriander and a squeeze of lime.

Serve with wali (boiled rice) or chapati.

Recipe 4 — Mandazi — Zanzibari Doughnuts

The breakfast of Zanzibar. These fried triangular doughnuts flavoured with cardamom are eaten warm with chai.

Ingredients (makes 16):

• 2 cups plain flour
• Half cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• Half teaspoon ground cardamom
• Half teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons butter or coconut oil
• 1 egg
• Half cup coconut milk
• Oil for deep frying

Method: Mix dry ingredients. Rub in butter. Beat egg with coconut milk and combine with flour mixture to form a soft dough. Rest for 30 minutes.

Roll dough to 1cm thick and cut into triangles or squares. Deep fry in hot oil until golden brown on both sides — around 3-4 minutes total.

Drain on paper towel and eat warm. Dust with cinnamon sugar if desired.

Recipe 5 — Zanzibar Spiced Lemonade — Sharubati

A refreshing spiced cold drink using Zanzibar's citrus and spices.

Ingredients (serves 4):

• Juice of 4 lemons or limes
• 4 cups cold water
• 4 tablespoons sugar or honey
• Half teaspoon ground cardamom
• Quarter teaspoon ground ginger
• Pinch of clove powder
• Handful of fresh mint
• Ice

Method: Combine lemon juice, sugar, spices and half the water. Stir until sugar dissolves. Add remaining water and adjust sweetness and spice to taste. Add mint and ice. Serve immediately.

This is extraordinarily refreshing on a hot day and the cardamom and ginger give it a warmth that is unmistakably Zanzibari.

A Note on the Spices

All of these recipes work best with genuine Zanzibar spices — whole spices freshly ground are far more aromatic than pre-ground spices that have been sitting in a supermarket for months.

If you brought spices home from Zanzibar or from our HuShop store — use them generously. They are fresh, potent and full of the sunshine and soil of the Spice Island.

Pika vizuri — cook well. Kula vizuri — eat well. That is the Zanzibar way.