Thiep bou dien (rice with fish) is the national dish of Senegal.
Ingredients for 6
• 2 kg (4 lb 8 oz) white grouper
• 6 tbsp green nokoss
• Vegetable oil
• 100 g (3½ oz) pumpkin
• 2 carrots
• 1 turnip
• 1 cassava tuber
• African eggplant (aubergine)
• ½ white cabbage
• 2 tbsp tomato paste (concentrated purée)
• 8 cups fish stock
• Salt and pepper
• 1 fresh chilli
• 1 tsp soumbala
• 200 g tamarind paste
• 2 kg (4 lb 8 oz) broken rice
• 1 piece of guedjef and yété (dried fish and shell) or dried bonito flakes
Fresh herbs
Lime wedges

PREPARATION
• Scale and clean the fish. Cut it into pieces and rinse in clean water. Make some reasonably deep cuts on the skin of each piece, then brush the fish with 2 tbsp of the green nokoss, ensuring some goes into the incisions.

• Heat the oil for deep-frying, then fry each piece of fish and set aside.

• Peel the pumpkin, carrots, turnips, and cassava. Cut all of the vegetables into large pieces.

• In a large flameproof casserole dish, brown 2 tbsp of the green nokoss with the tomato paste in a little oil. Cook over low heat for three minutes, then dilute with the fish stock.

• Add the vegetables and season with salt and pepper. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the whole chilli, then simmer for 30 minutes.

• In a frying pan, brown 1 tbsp of the green nokoss with a drizzle of the oil. Stir in the soumbala, then the tamarind paste.

• Season with salt and pepper, then cook until the mixture has reduced to resemble chutney in texture.

• Meanwhile, rinse the broken rice with clean water. Bring some water to the boil in a couscoussier to partially cook the rice. Cover and cook the rice for 10 minutes.

• Adjust the seasoning of the sauce if required. Add the fish pieces, as well as the guedjef and yété, and then simmer for 10 minutes. Remove the fish and vegetables from the sauce. Strain the fish stock.

• Pour half of the strained stock and the rice into a flameproof casserole dish. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and cook over very low heat for 15 minutes.

• Add the final 1 tbsp of green nokoss to the rice, mix, and finish cooking the thiep over low heat for 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork.

• To serve, put the rice on a large serving platter and arrange the fish and vegetables on top. Add a few spoonfuls of the tamarind chutney. Decorate with herbs and lime wedges.
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