Cooking Around the World: The Gambia

The Republic of Gambia is the smallest country on the African mainland and is bordered on three sides by Sénégal. A wide variety of ethnic groups live in The Gambia and its cuisine is a mixture of Native, Arabic, Portugese and British influences.

For our tabletop travel to The Gambia, we cooked a traditional Gambian one-pot stew of fish and vegetables in a tomato broth. And since it's usually served with rice, I used the opportunity to makes these cute lil' rice dudes my cousin had sent me a photo of with a note that read: "thought of you when I saw this." Adorable.

The funny thing: I made two rice dudes - one of each of my kids - and my husband wanted to know where his was. Oh, brother!

Serekunda Fish Benachin
Benachin literally means 'one-pot.' So, all of this went into one pot and simmered until cooked and soft. Then I laid the fish on top and steamed them until they were opaque. One recipe I found listed measurements in "cigarette cups;" I have no idea what that means!

onions
leeks
carrots
cabbage (1/2 head)
fresh tomatoes
zucchini
cauliflower
chicken stock
tomato sauce
fish
fresh herbs (mint, tarragon, dill, and parsley)
salt
pepper

I served the soup with a

traditional Gambian recipe for a salad of cabbage, celery, spring onions, and pineapple with herbs in a yogurt, sour cream and coconut milk dressing.

I didn't really measure anything for this meal...just eye-balled it and it turned out great!

We are off the Georgia next in our Cooking Around the World Adventure!

Comments

Hot Chocolate Agasajo-Style {Spice It Up!}

photo by D For my Spice It Up! kiddos this week, I was looking for an exotic drink to serve while we learned about saffron. I found a recipe from food historian Maricel Presilla that mimicked traditional Spanish hot chocolate from the 17th century where it was served at lavish receptions called agasajos . When I teach, I don't always get to shoot photos. Thankfully, D grabbed my camera and snapped a few. Ingredients serves 14-16 1 gallon organic whole milk 3 T dried rosebuds - or 2 t rosewater 2 t saffron threads, lightly crushed 3 T ground cinnamon 3 whole tepin chiles, crushed 2 vanilla beans, split lengthwise 1 C organic granulated sugar 1 lb. bittersweet chocolate Procedure In a large soup pot that can hold a gallon plus, combine milk, dried rosebuds (or rosewater, if you are using that), saffron threads, ground cinnamon, chiles, vanilla beans, and sugar and warm over medium heat till it steams. Whisk to dissolve sugar, then lower heat an...

Frozen Art Gourmet Ice Cream

As we headed inland from the coast, I cringed as the temperature gauge in the car for outside temp climbed into the triple digits. Ugh. I'm a rather wimpy central coastal Californian who begins to wilt when it's 70 degrees outside. Thank goodness for air conditioning and a planned ice cream stop. When I parked the car outside Frozen Art Gourmet Ice Cream in Santa Rosa, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. We knew that we still had to get to the campsite...and set up our tents in the heat. But we were going to enjoy the cool, sweet treats from Frozen Art first! Michoacana ice creameries are the equivalent of Starbucks in Mexico; they're ubiquitous. Purists, however, claim that operating a true Michoacana ice cream shop require ties to Tocumbo. It's estimated that almost ninety percent of the Tocumban population is currently employed in the ice cream business from making ice cream itself to making equipment. But the real art of Tocumban ice creams: imaginat...

A Cheese Board Anchored on a Trio of Italian Cheeses + A Pinot Nero from Alto Adige #ItalianFWT on CulinaryCam.Com

I am in the process of migrating over to my new domain. Come on over to read " A Cheese Board Anchored on a Trio of Italian Cheeses + A Pinot Nero from Alto Adige " for December's #ItalianFWT.

Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Search This Blog