It’s been a while, but I am back! This time, I cooked food from Senegal. I had some help with recipes on this one. A long time ago, when Senegal was still far off in this challenge, someone gave me a file about Senegalese food with a few recipes. Unfortunately, I can’t remember if this was on Reddit or Instagram and either way, they must have deleted their account because I can’t find their message. I do really appreciate their help this week!
Senegal is located on the west coast of West Africa. It is named after the Senegal River, which flows along the country’s east and north borders.
Archaeological evidence suggests that the region was inhabited in prehistoric times. Since then, various ethnic groups lived in the area, followed by a series of kingdoms during the 6th and 14th centuries. Around that time, Islam was introduced, though the people resisted initially because they had their own traditional religions.
During the 14th century, the Jolof Empire was one of the most powerful in the region. It ruled much of present-day Senegal, as well as Mauritania and Gambia. Portuguese ships began visiting in the 1440s, and it is thought that the two nations traded, which helped the empire expand. During the 16th century, the state of Cayor broke away from the empire. There was a battle that resulted in the death of the Jolof Empire’s leader, and the empire disintegrated soon after.
There were multiple European countries visiting the region by this time. The Portuguese were followed by the Dutch, the British, and the French. France gradually colonized Senegal, though the kingdoms in the area put up a fierce resistance.
In 1959, Senegal merged with French Sudan to form the Mali Federation, which became fully independent the following year. Shortly after, the Federation broke up, resulting in modern-day Senegal and Mali (the name taken by French Sudan).
Senegal, a presidential republic, has been recognized as one of the most stable countries on the African continent. However, it is also a poor country with a relatively low Human Development Index rating.
What Do People Eat in Senegal?
Senegal’s cuisine is similar to that of other West African countries, but there are also influences from France. Surprisingly, there are also elements of Vietnamese cuisine. This likely also came from the French, who were heavily involved with Vietnam during the 19th century.
Fish is popular due to Senegal’s proximity to the Atlantic Ocean. Chicken, lamb, and beef are also common, but not pork, because the majority of the population is Muslim.
Other common ingredients include peas, millet, rice, sweet potatoes, cassava, black-eyed peas, and various vegetables. Peanuts are particularly prevalent, as they grow well and are Senegal’s main cash crop.
A variety of local fruits are often made into fresh juice, and they are frequently served with dessert. The desserts themselves can be simple and made from local ingredients, or more extravagant, such as French pastries.
What I Made
- Domoda (Beef and Tomato Stew)
- Thieboudienne (Fish and Rice)
- Mafe (Peanut Stew with Chicken)
- Fataya (Fish Pastries)
- Nems (Spring Rolls)
Scroll down to read about other popular Senegalese dishes I didn’t make!
Domoda (Beef and Tomato Stew)
Domoda is the name of a popular dish in a few different parts of Africa, but it’s not always the same dish! In Senegal, domoda refers to a spicy stew made from meat and vegetables in a tomato-based sauce. But in some countries, it’s the name given to a peanut stew. Domoda is typically served with rice.
I started by cooking some diced onion, then added chunks of beef and let them cook until browned. I added salt, tomato paste, and fresh tomato, and cooked for a few minutes before pouring in water.
While I waited for the beef to get a head start on cooking, I made a Senegalese seasoning mix called ‘nokoss’ by blending habanero, garlic, onion, red bell pepper, salt, and pepper.
Once the beef had been cooking for about an hour, I added carrot, sweet potato, potato, more tomato, the nokoss, and a bay leaf to the pot. I let everything simmer for another half hour or so.
I removed some of the liquid, combined it with flour, and stirred it back into the stew. I cooked until the stew thickened, then seasoned to taste with salt and pepper and served.
This was quite good. I didn’t serve it with rice initially, but I did when I ate the leftovers, and I enjoyed it more that way. I think you need something to soak up all the sauce! Bread would also work well.
This recipe was one of those in the Senegalese recipe file I was given.
Thieboudienne (Fish and Rice)
Thieboudienne, consisting of fish, vegetables, and rice, is popular in a few places in Africa. In Senegal, it is often considered the national dish. I used mahi mahi because I already had it in the freezer, but I think any firm white fish can be used. It was also meant to be bone-in, skin-on fish, but I used boneless, skinless pieces.
To make a marinade for the fish, I combined onion, ginger, garlic, green onion, parsley, and dill in a food processor. I added lemon zest, oil, salt, and pepper. Then I slathered the mixture over the fish and let it sit while I prepared the remaining ingredients.
I processed onion, garlic, tomato, and red bell pepper in the food processor, and set this mixture aside for the moment.
I browned the fish in a large skillet with a little oil, then transferred it to a plate. I sautéed some onion and added tomato paste, followed a couple of minutes later by cumin, coriander, and bay leaves. I stirred in the red pepper puree I made earlier, then simmered for a little while.
I added chicken stock (it was meant to be vegetable stock but I always have chicken), and brought the liquid to a boil.
Next, I added the vegetables at intervals depending on how long they needed to cook. I added carrot and sweet potato, followed later by green beans. Once the vegetables were cooked through, I transferred them to a plate.
If I’d been using larger, bone-in pieces of fish, I would have added them next. But since I had smaller filets which were already mostly cooked through after pan-frying, I decided to add them at the very end. Instead, I added rice and a whole habanero at this point.
Once the rice was cooked through, I added the fish back in, followed by the cooked vegetables and some shredded cabbage. I covered the pan and cooked for a few more minutes before serving.
I thought this tasted good, though I’m not sure I liked the lemon in the marinade for the fish. Overall, it was a solid dish. I got this recipe from NY Times Cooking.
Mafe (Peanut Stew with Chicken)
Peanut stews are common in West Africa, especially this mafe, which is a popular dish in Senegal (and in other countries too). I chose to make mine with chicken, but beef could also be used.
First, I covered some chicken thighs with a mixture of garlic, ginger, salt, pepper, and chili flakes. I let them marinate overnight.
When it was time to make dinner, I sautéed some diced onion, then added garlic and salt. I stirred in tomato paste and fish sauce, then after a few minutes, I added chicken stock.
I added the marinated chicken to the pot and brought the liquid to a simmer. I removed some of the cooking liquid and combined it in a bowl with peanut butter, then poured the mixture into the pot. This helps the peanut butter mix properly; otherwise, it tends to get clumpy.
I added carrot, sweet potato, and potato, and simmered for about half an hour. Then I stirred in some shredded cabbage and let everything cook for a few more minutes. Like the domoda, I served this on its own initially, but I did have leftovers with rice and, also like the domoda, I did prefer having something to soak up the sauce!
This is another recipe from NY Times Cooking.
Fataya (Fish Pastries)
Fataya, also known as ‘pastels’, are little fish pastries, traditionally deep-fried and served with a spicy tomato sauce. I decided to bake mine instead to make them a bit healthier.
I began by making the filling. I used mahi mahi, but I think just about any fish can be used. I diced the fish and sautéed it in oil with garlic, onion, parsley, salt, and pepper. I set the mixture aside to cool.
Next, I combined flour, salt, eggs, oil, and water to make the dough. I rolled it out and cut out circles of dough using a drinking glass.
I folded each dough circle over some of the filling and used a fork to seal the edges. Then, I sprayed the fataya with oil and baked them in the oven for around 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, I made the tomato sauce. I added tomato paste, tomatoes, onion, chili, garlic, and parsley to a pan with some oil and sautéed for a few minutes. Then, I added chicken stock, MSG, salt, and pepper. The recipe called for a stock cube and water here so this is what I replaced that with. I simmered the sauce gently until the fataya were ready.
I thought these were pretty good, and I really liked the sauce. I’d love to try them fried some day as I am sure they would be even better!
This recipe is from Chef’s Pencil.
Nems (Spring Rolls)
This dish displays the Vietnamese influence on Senegalese food. Nems are fried spring rolls that can have a variety of fillings. I saw versions that used rice paper as the wrapper, as well as spring roll pastry. The recipe I chose called for spring roll pastry but I can’t get that at my regular supermarket, so I got rice paper. This was a mistake, as you will see!
First, I blended up some habaneros and garlic with a lot of cilantro.
I added some of this cilantro mixture to a bowl with shrimp, cayenne pepper, and salt.
For the filling, I combined ground beef, cooked rice noodles, onions, green onions, shredded carrots, the rest of the cilantro blend, cayenne pepper, salt, sweet chili sauce, and fish sauce.
To assemble, I first dipped each rice paper sheet in warm water and soaked it for about 10 seconds or so, just so it was pliable. Then I added some of the filling and one shrimp and rolled it up before repeating.
Since the filling was wet and the rice paper was wet, I was already unsure how successful I would be in deep-frying these. However, I gave it a go! I quickly found that it just wasn’t going to work. There was too much liquid, and the rolls were also bursting open. So instead, I decided to brush the rolls with oil and bake them. They didn’t really get crispy this way, but at least they stayed together.
The filling was delicious, but the texture of the rice paper after baking wasn’t great. I’ve fried rice paper rolls before and they were really good, so apparently this is one case where you can’t just bake them and have a comparable result. I’d like to try making these again with spring roll pastry since they would probably be amazing. I just didn’t want to go to the Asian grocery store for one item.
The recipe I used is from Hanne Cuisine on YouTube.
Other Popular Senegalese Dishes
- Thiakry – a sweet, creamy couscous pudding. Common additions include raisins, coconut, vanilla, and pineapple.
- Soupou kandia – a tomato-based sauce containing okra and meat or fish. Usually served over rice.
Final Thoughts
This was another great week! Everything was good but my favorite was the mafe. However, if I’d used spring roll pastry for the nems, I think they would have been my favorite instead.
Next time, I will be cooking food from Serbia.