Senegalese Chicken Yassa
London, United Kingdom ·
Aperçu
Chicken Yassa is one of Senegal's most internationally celebrated dishes, a deeply flavoured stew where chicken is marinated in an aggressive mixture of lemon juice, mustard, and onions, grilled or seared until charred, then slowly cooked with an enormous quantity of caramelised onions until they collapse into a rich, tangy, slightly sweet sauce. The dish is a masterclass in the power of onions as a flavour base. Five or six large onions per chicken is not unusual, they cook down dramatically and transform into a completely different thing: sweet, golden, and complex. The lemon keeps the sauce bright and the mustard adds a subtle depth. Yassa is eaten across Senegal, Gambia, and Guinea-Bissau and wherever Senegalese communities have settled globally.
Note de Patrimoine AFN
Yassa originates from the Casamance region of southern Senegal, among the Diola and Mandinka peoples. It is one of the foundational dishes of Senegalese cuisine and has spread throughout West Africa and the Senegalese diaspora worldwide. The word yassa refers to the technique of marinating and cooking with lemon and onion, a preparation method that is both practical, the acid tenderises the meat, and deeply flavourful.
Finding scotch bonnet here in Dallas is always a struggle so I used habanero from H-E-B instead. I was skeptical about slicing 5 whole onions at first but after marinating overnight with the lemon juice and dijon, they caramelized so well with the leg quarters. remimded me of my Senegalese neighbor's cooking in university. e sweet sha!