The Maputo Central Market and Beyond

Checking out the Central Market

Eating a Custard Apple

Both of our stops in Maputo were more for utility than to see the city. We needed a place to crash to continue our journey to more prioritized destinations (the beaches and islands of Mozambique and the Royal Kingdom of Swaziland). During our second stint though we managed to see a bit more though. It was well worth it as the city proved a hub for goods we had seen across the country and offered some interesting food.

Mozambican-Indian Food: We sought out the sister of one of Kulsum's friends who is living and working in Maputo. She knew the city a bit and was able to guide us to an Indian Restaurant. It was here that we compared the Mozambique twist on Indian food to the American one. As many other Mozambique restaurants, about half of the menu was not in stock, but we still managed to find some Palak Paneer (spinach and cheese dish), Butter Chicken, Veggie Curry Fry, and Chickpea Masala that were quite good. The Palak Paneer was thick with bright green spinach that I wondered might even be a slightly different variety of the vegetable than is common in the United States. The chickpea masala was light and spicy and made for a tasty dish. The highlight of the meal might have been the Butter Chicken which was rich and nicely spiced, and not unlike a version I might find in the US.

The Central Market- On the Saturday morning before we left Maputo, we checked out the Central Market. The market was no bigger than the 30th street market in Philly, but contained a different world of fruit and vegetables. The diversity of fresh spices and more commercialized vendors was dazzling. Particularly we found two fruits I had never seen before. The first was the Custard Apple, an Indonesia-native, green bumpy fruit with a white interior. The white flesh is full of hard black seeds bigger than a watermelon's that need spit out. Its flavor is like a slightly sour pineapple. I really enjoyed. We also purchased a soursop which I think it actually in the same family as the custard apple. It has a smoother green skin covered in soft spikes that look (but do not feel) much like a cactus. It too is full of white flesh and black seeds, but is a more consistent flesh. The custard apple was kind of compartmentalized like a cross between a pomegranate and a orange. The flavor of soursop was not nearly as appealing as the custard apple. It may have been under-ripe. It tasted very sour and flowery. I also managed to purchase some homemade mozambique-style peri-peri sauce in the market. I look forward to attempting the spicy chicken dish upon my return.