With both hands gripping a large wooden spoon, a woman stirred thick maize-meal porridge -- Zimbabwe's staple known as sadza -- over an open fire while a three-legged pot of sorghum bubbled beside her.
A few steps away, men skinned an ox head as others chopped tomatoes and sorted fiery chillies for relish in a flurry of preparation.
This is the daily ritual at Siphatisiwe Ncube's alley kitchen eatery in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe's second city, where a growing number of customers are turning to traditional grains such as millet and sorghum, drawn to their nutritional value.
The city is seeing a rise in indigenous restaurants, reflecting a broader shift in public attitudes away from more processed diets, said food scientist and lecturer Makhosi Mahlangu.
"Five years ago, you would name less than 10 indigenous restaurants (in Bulawayo)," he told AFP, adding that today there were about 30 offering local dishes, which are not necessarily cheaper than fast food.
Nutritionists have warned that in Zimbabwe a shift away from traditional grains, legumes and leafy vegetables has fuelled persistent deficiencies in essential micronutrients such as iron, zinc and vitamin A.
Scientists say poor nutrition is linked to one in five deaths globally, as fast food and ultra-processed meals steadily replace traditional diets across much of the world.
Unhealthy diets are among the leading drivers of obesity, diabetes, stroke and other non-communicable diseases, according to the World Health Organization.
"I grew up cooking for my brothers," 49-year-old Ncube told AFP, recalling how they preferred food boiled in the traditional way to fried meals.
That preference shaped the cooking style that has become the hallmark of her alley kitchen, which opened 15 years ago and now employs more than a dozen people full-time.
"We only cook food that is traditional," she said.
Her restaurant serves meals such as boiled village-reared chickens and small-grain sadza for $5, drawing a steady stream of customers.
Among them are Zimbabweans who have returned from places like South Africa or Britain, where they missed home-style cooking.
A one-time Miss Zimbabwe, Nomusa Ndiweni-Emiyoit said she first craved traditional food while she was abroad in Britain and France.
"What frustrated me at that time is Ghanaians, Nigerians, Cameroonians all had access to their foods," she said.
At the nearby Kwesintu restaurant, manager Taurai Gona said more people were becoming conscious of what they eat.
"People are beginning to understand that prevention is better than cure. Why not focus on eating healthy?" he said.
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