History of Yassa in Senegal, West Africa

History

Yassa originates from Senegal, West Africa. It is a specialty from the Casamance region of South Senegal, which is between The Gambia and Guinea Bissau, partially isolated from the rest of the country by the Gambian territory. Yassa is a spicy dish prepared with onions, poultry or marinated fish, onions, lemon, and mustard. The fish is often substituted for chicken and commonly served with white rice. 

The Senegal have a very specific way that they serve and eat their yassa. First, they lay a cloth on the floor and set the bowl of yassa in the middle. The host breaks up and distributes the meat using their right hand, unless a guest wants to break their meat themselves. It is considered extremely rude to place the left hand in the bowl, so sometimes another person has to assists someone when breaking their meat.
To eat, a person is supposed to gather a lot of rice, chicken, and sauce, and then roll it into a ball against the side of their bowl. It is considered rude to start making another ball while still chewing the previous. When done, the person is to wash their hands and return to the table and converse. However, it is rude to look someone in the eyes while they are still eating.

Recipe

Prep Time: 30 min Cook Time: 50 min Total: 2 hr 20 min

Ingredients

• 4 onions, finely chopped
• 3 lemons, juiced
• 1/2 red wine vinegar
• 2 tbsp mustard
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 habanero pepper, chopped
• 5 skin-on chicken breasts, cut in half
• 1/2 cup oil
• 2 cubes chicken bouillon
• 1 cube beef bouillon
• 1/2 cup hot water
• 1 cup pitted green olives
• 3/4 ground black pepper

Instructions

1. Mix onions, lemon juice, mustard, red wine vinegar, pepper, and garlic in large bowl. Add chicken and cover and let marinate in the refrigerator for an hour.
2. Preheat grill for medium heat and lightly oil grate.
3. Put chicken on grill, reserving onions and marinade in bowl. Grill for 5-10 minutes until brown.
4. Heat oil in deep skillet on medium heat. Add onions and cook for about 5 minutes until golden brown. Pour in marinade, cook until heated through. Stir in chicken.
5.  Crumble chicken and beef bouillon cubes into hot water in a small bowl. Pour into skillet. Cover and let simmer for 30 minutes until flavors combine. Stir in olives and black pepper.
6. Serve.

Analysis

I found that the culture of Senegal was interesting for a variety of reasons. I was surprised to learn that Senegalese see it as rude to take food with their left hand, and that they have a very specific routine before and during their meal.
Although this recipe didn't include rice, I added white rice to mine. This could be substituted for any type of rice. I also removed the skin from my chicken before adding it in with the marinade.