Find the best Senegalese dishes in Dakar

Senegalese cuisine is one of the richest in West Africa. If you have not yet tested our good addresses in Dakar, it is quite possible to realize this dream. Senegal being a country bordered by the sea, fish occupies a prominent place in Senegalese cuisine. Grouper, red carp, tuna, sole, monkfish, barracuda, swordfish. The choice is more than varied, as is the cooking. Fish can be dried, braised, smoked or even fermented. Even if the meat is not very common, one nevertheless finds beautiful parts on the markets for a rather high cost like the sheep, the beef or the goat. Senegalese generally prefer chicken. Many Senegalese dishes also contain cereals such as millet, fonio or rice. Senegalese cuisine also includes many vegetables such as tomatoes, cabbage, carrots, eggplant, or less common vegetables such as okra (green and fibrous vegetable), cowpeas (beans) or cassava roots. Finally, fruits are an integral part of the landscape with delicious yellow or green mangoes, mandarins, dates, papayas, guavas, coconuts, just like groundnuts (peanuts in all forms).

Fish rice thiebou djieune as the wolofs call it is the national dish loved by all Senegalese and by all tourists too. It was invented by Penda Mbaye, a famous 19th century cook. It is a dish made from rice, fish and vegetables and can be white rice (thiebe bou wekh) or red rice (thieb bou khonk) where rice is cooked with a mixture of tomato paste. Fish rice is often served with accompaniments: a little nététou, mashed bissap leaf or typical African tamarind. If you have already been to Senegal or if you have a Senegalese friend, you have surely heard of thiebou djieune. A dish that does not go unnoticed because of its flavor. In Dakar, there are hundreds of places that offer this dish. I recommend it to you Keur mistletoe located in the city center at the intersection of rue Mohamed VI. A place that presents the dish in all its forms. The good thiof is always there to accompany amateurs. Everything is so well stocked for a good discovery of this prestigious dish from Senegal.

The yassa (from a Creole word from Casamance meaning "to fry") is a Senegalese dish made with onions and rice and which can also be served with meat marinated in lemon then fried or braised (meat yassa – Yassa Yapp in Wolof), chicken (chicken yassa.) It is a simple dish, quick to make and appreciated by all thanks to its simple and economical basic ingredients. It is one of the national dishes of the country. If you want to test it try the calabash : it's the restaurant located on the west corniche road. The decor is sober and elegant, the service quick and smiling. The dishes are hearty for a better tasting. Check the musical programming to combine pleasure with pleasure. Always so perfect, it's a pleasure every time you return to Dakar to be able to count on this establishment. Our favorite ? The accompaniments of the dishes which are excellent.

the Dodoma (from Wolof domodaa, same meaning) is a stew accompanied by white rice, eaten in Senegal where it is considered a traditional dish. It can be prepared with fish, meat, or chicken and all kinds of vegetables that make this dish so rich. The particularity is that the sauce is made from concentrated tomato and with flour which gives it a unique taste and an essential flavor. Lemon and vinegar also give it a unique taste. Many women like this dish during the rainy season because it is rich. Test the Dodoma at Restaurant Senegalese located on the land front road. A treat awaits you. This culinary pillar has become one of the essential restaurants in Dakar. Hearty, good quality cuisine, with a very long and tempting menu. If you don't know what to choose, do as the locals do, take the fresh Dodoma dish of the day. To be enjoyed without moderation. Enjoy your meal.

mafe (or maafé, maffé) is a sauce made from peanut paste. Its preparation can be complemented with meat or fish. This dish goes well with rice. It's a sauce found in all of sub-Saharan Africa under different names. A typical Senegal, excellent recipe. Impossible not to like that. The vegetables set the scene and give more vitamins to the sauce. In order not to be told about this dish, go At Loutcha a Senegalese canteen (but not only) in the heart of Dakar! The people who swarm there at lunchtime are proof of this. Tourists and workers rub shoulders there to taste the traditional mafé. But you can also eat rice with fish and other local dishes and also Cape Verdean specialties in a very family atmosphere. The bonus: Chez Loutcha offers incomparable mafé. Go taste and savor this dish of Senegalese teranga!

Kandia soup in wolof okra is a vegetable from a tropical plant with cracks. Originally from Africa, the fruits are eaten and contain edible seeds. Very popular in Africa, it is also so in South America, hence the famous Louisiana okra, in Asia, in Guyana or even in Haiti. When cut, it has a gelatinous texture, which is why it is necessary to prolong the cooking to reduce this aspect. In Senegal, soupou is used kandia (kandja), literally “okra soup”. The recipe can be essentially fish, but it can also be prepared by adding smoked fish and a little meat, and seafood. The palm oil mixed with the okra sauce makes this dish special. Don't forget the sauce comes with white rice. I'm telling you, the Senegalese love it. Always  at Loutcha and in all Senegalese restaurants you will find this specialty loved by young and old.