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Soft drinks from Zimbabwe

Mangisi (Zimbabwean sweet-sour millet drink)mangisi

Mangisi is a Zimbabwean non-alcoholic drink made from malted finger millet. The malt flour is heated slowly with water into a sweet mash called masvusvu, which is diluted, strained and left for some hours to sour spontaneously. Masvusvu is itself a traditional Zimbabwean beverage.

DocumentedSoft drinks1.3 h

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedNo source read gives amounts; the steps follow Zvauya et al. (1997, abstract) and the Wikipedia outline.
Malted finger millet flour[zvauya1997]
Water[s2]
Starterspontaneous (utensils, the fermenting pot and malt flora that survive cooking)

Total time across the recorded steps: 1.3 h

Start
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What changes: Finger millet is malted and milled

Step 1 of 4
Malt finger millet and mill it
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactic acid bacteria
Yeasts
Moulds

Output: malt flour.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

At a glance

Mangisi is a Zimbabwean non-alcoholic drink made from malted finger millet. The malt flour is heated slowly with water into a sweet mash called masvusvu, which is diluted, strained and left for some hours to sour spontaneously. Masvusvu is itself a traditional Zimbabwean beverage. Made in 4 steps over 1.3 h. The longest step, heat the malt flour and water slowly into masvusvu, takes 1.3 h (Wikipedia (en)) and runs at at least 60 °C (Zvauya R 1997). Lactic acid bacteria and Yeasts and moulds do most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step1.3 hReported[s2]Heat the malt flour and water slowly into masvusvu
Temperatureat least 60 °CMeasured[zvauya1997]Heat the malt flour and water slowly into masvusvu
AciditypH 6.1 → 3.98Measured[zvauya1997]Leave to ferment spontaneously

What makes this one different

Mangisi is made from malted finger millet flour, cooked slowly into masvusvu, then diluted, strained and soured spontaneously for some hours.

Related ferments

Variants

  • MasvusvuThe sweet cooked mash, itself a traditional Zimbabwean beverage (Zvauya et al. 1997).

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

  1. [zvauya1997] Zvauya R., Mygochi T., Parawira W. 1997, Microbial and biochemical changes occurring during production of masvusvu and mangisi, traditional Zimbabwean beverages, Plant Foods for Human Nutrition 51:43–51 (abstract)paper
  2. [s2] Wikipedia (en), Mangisi (outline of the method)wiki
  3. [gadaga1999] Gadaga T.H., Mutukumira A.N., Narvhus J.A., Feresu S.B. 1999, A review of traditional fermented foods and beverages of Zimbabwe, International Journal of Food Microbiology 53:1–11 (abstract; lists mangisi among the non-alcoholic cereal drinks)paper