Hey there Masset Chefs!
I am back with another fantastic fabulous recipe!! I still remember when my mother started getting me in the kitchen at the age of 8 and taught me about the special ingredients going to one dish or how to properly lower the amount of charcoal in order to have the perfect desired taste for a sauce; or again the importance of a woman never leaving the kitchen until the food is done cooking!
Today, I bring you the recipe of a popular dish back home: Maafe. The smell, color, and presentation of the dish makes of it that wonderful food that you would like to eat right the way. Maafe is a delicious dish widely consumed in West Africa like in Senegal, Mali, Guinea. It is mainly based on peanut butter (yes peanut butter!). In the US, it often happens that people eat peanut butter as spread, but in Africa it is most of the time used in savory dishes. There are many varieties for this sauce; it can be made with beef, fish, chicken or even veggies. But since the beef one is more popular, I will use that recipe on this post.
Photo by TripAdvisor
Before I give you the recipe, let me highlight some important (essential!!!) ingredients that you'll need to get right the way before even starting; and do not worry I will explain each of the terms:
"Netetou" in Senegal, "soumbala" in Guinea and Mali, "Dadawa" or "iru" in Nigeria; all these names refer to the same condiment present on all West African markets. Major ingredient of African cuisine - just like nuoc nam in Southeast Asia - the netetou is from the transformation of the seeds of African locust pods, a leguminous shrub that is abundant in the sub-region. You can find it in most of the African shops around.
Then, we have the "nokos." For a good Senegalese maafe, you have to get the nokos ready. It is just a kind of mash that is obtained by mixing onions, pepper, spices (we will use Mechoui here) and some netetou; usually some people would put garlic too but I usually don't because of the strong taste of the garlic that can alter the taste of the peanut butter. So, you will notice that this spicy mashed is used as a condiment for the success of the dish.
Now that you are prepared, we can get started!
INGREDIENTS
Sauce
500g of meat
3-5 tablespoons peanut butter
1 onion
2 fresh tomatoes
2 tablespoon tomato paste
3 carrots
1 sweet potato
½ cabbage
2 large potatoes
1 African eggplant that we call diakhato and that is usually green
1 green pepper
1 cup of vegetable oil
2 Laurel leaves
3 tablespoons Mechoui
1 tablespoon Tomate Doree
1 tablespoon Baaral
1 teaspoon of Netetou
1.5 liters of water
1 tablespoon vinegar
Salt and pepper
White Rice
4 1/2 cups water
3 1/2 cups uncooked rice
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoon of olive oil
PREPARATION
Tip for the sauce: Do not put too much tomato paste, otherwise the sauce will have a sour taste. Put the potatoes and sweet potatoes about 15-20 minutes before the sauce is ready as they cook faster. Take the pepper out as soon as it begins to soften otherwise your sauce will be spicy (unless you want that 😊).
The sauce:
Proceed by cleaning the meant then cut in stew pieces. Marinate with 1 tablespoon of Mechoui. Chop the onions and tomatoes.
Use a wide saucepan and grease with the cup of oil. Heat on medium high then brown the meat pieces in oil, (we just want it to get some color)
Add the chopped onion, and let it fry with the meat to brown slightly, then add the diced tomatoes
Once they soften, add the tomato paste, Tomate Doree and a cup of water before letting it all cook for 2-3 minutes. Make sure that it does not stick by stirring often (but not too much)
Meanwhile, dilute the peanut butter and stir to make sure that it doesn't have any lumps left. What I usually do is to heat 1.5 liters water in the microwave and then add the paste in the water
Now let's go back to the pot. Once you start noticing the oil separating from the tomato mixture and shining at the top, start pouring the peanut butter mixture over
Add vegetables, Baaral and the laurel leaf. Simmer for at least half an hour
Add the Nokos (mixed with 2 tablespoons of Mechoui) that I mentioned at the beginning of this post. Then start salting it at taste, once the sauce becomes consistent and that the peanut butter is mixed with the sauce in general
Caution! Do not salt until after the sauce simmers otherwise it becomes too salty
As soon as the oil slightly rises to the surface, it is a sign that the sauce is ready. From here, you’ll just add a tablespoon of vinegar, then salt and pepper to taste and voila!
The rice:
Place the rice, water, olive oil and salt into a rice cooker. Cook the rice according to the “white rice” setting on the rice cooker.
When the rice has finished cooking, toss the rice, taking care to be gentle, and not mash the rice.
PRESENTATION
First, fluff the rice with a fork and serve hot; then serve the sauce over. There is no proper way to serve it but usually we have vegetables in the middle! If you want people to eat separately, you can take several small plates. But traditionally Senegal, everyone eats on the same dish.
As usual, make sure to let us know how it went.
Bon Appetit,
Aby
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