A recipe from Senegal: the delicious Chicken Yassa

By: Daina KONE

Eating times are the most important moments in the day. It is an opportunity to share meals with others and to hear some amazing anecdotes of everybody around a table. Senegal has a huge varieties of fishes, vegetables and spices which make our dishes very unusual and powerful in taste. The diversity of ethnics and cultures in Senegal have an influence on the cuisine. There is a big gastronomical interexchange. Canadians cuisine is very different to Senegalese cuisine in term of flavors, diversity of ingredients and meals texture. However, there is one recipe that I want to share with you: the Chicken Yassa. In my opinion, it is the simplest recipe in Senegalese cuisine. It is very simple to make and it is delicious! Now, more and more people use to prepare it at home and everywhere in Africa. What I really appreciate in African cuisine, it is that we don’t use any measurement, we just follow our instincts and do it! For this recipe, I will help you a little bit but the most important is to do it with love.

Ingredients:

● ½ cup of peanut oil

● 1 chicken, cut into serving size pieces

● 10 onions, cut up

● 8 tablespoons of lemon juice

● 8 tablespoons of vinegar

● 1 bay leaf

● 10 cloves minced garlic

● 2 tablespoons of mustard

● 2 Maggi cubes

● 1 tablespoon of soy sauce

● 1 chili pepper

● Red pepper

● Black pepper

● Salt

● 2 carrots and cabbage, cut into chunks

● Rice

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients (except the rice, carrot and cabbage) in a big glass dish and put it in the refrigerator for a few hours or overnight. This method allows chicken to be marinate and be tasty.

2. Remove the chicken pieces from the marinade and grill it over a charcoal fire until is lightly browned but not done

3. While the chicken is browning. Remove onions from the marinade and cook them in a large saucepan for few minutes.

4. Add remaining[1] marinade and carrots and the cabbage

5. Bring to a slow boil and add the marinade

6. Cook everything into a sauce

7. Add chicken pieces to the sauce, cover and simmer until the chicken is done.

8. Cook the rice in a rice cooker and serve.

Vocabulary:

● Marinade

● Saucepan

● Bay leaf

● Chunks

● Charcoal fire

● Slow boil

● Serving sized pieces

● Cut up

● Glass dish

● grill