Just two more African countries left before going to another region of the world. The last country before South Africa is Zimbabwe.

Here are a few facts about Zimbabwe:

• Capital: Harare
• Population: about 14.2 million
• Area: 390 757 km km²
• Currency: US dollars

For the Zimbabwean recipe I made a beef stew. It seems to be a classic meal there. It is a very simple stew with few ingredients. A little bit of onion and tomato and beef. It was really good and had a strong beef taste. I was surprised by the amount of flavor that came out of so little ingredients.

Beef stew

Ingredients:

• 1.5 pound chuck roast
• 1/4 onion
• 1/4 can diced tomato or 1 tomato
• 2 tablespoon instant soup powder or 1 vegetable bouillon cube

Directions:

First, dice the onion, the tomato (if you use a whole tomato) and cut the meat in 1-2 inch cubes.

In a heavy bottom pot (I used a dutch oven), heat some oil and brown the beef cubes.

When the beef is browned add 1 liter of water, partially cover the pot and let simmer for 45 minutes to an hour or until the meat is cooked and tender. If all the juice evaporates you can add a little bit more water. At the end of this step you should have about 1 cup liquid.

Separate the meat and the liquid. Make sure you save the liquid.

Return the meat to the pot, add some oil and the onions. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the onions are translucent.

Add the tomatoes and cook for 2-3 minutes again.

Add the instant soup powder or bouillon cube to the reserved liquid and stir to dissolve. Add the liquid to the pot, cover and simmer on low heat for about 5 minutes.

The sauce should be slightly thick when it’s done. If not, cook on high heat until some of the liquid evaporates.

Pamusoroyi!