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<\/a>\nWe headed out to Hawa Restaurant, 410 Lenox Avenue in Harlem, for their West African cuisine. This is Senegal\u2019s national dish, Thiebu Djen \u2013 spellings vary widely but pronunciation is close to Cheh-boo Jen \u2013 and to call it \u201crice and fish\u201d is an understatement even though that\u2019s the literal translation. It\u2019s made from \u201cbroken rice\u201d (easily found at African markets) and if you look closely you\u2019ll see its short grains, but it begins its life as the standard long grain variety that breaks in the field or during processing or milling; the shards are sorted by size and are highly desirable since they cook faster and absorb flavors more readily than whole grains. The rice, combined with chopped onion and garlic, is cooked with tomato paste that imbues it with its deep red color and rich flavor; this version had a pleasant little kick to it, possibly from propping up that Scotch Bonnet pepper. Vegetables accompanying the tilapia were cabbage, carrot, cassava, and eggplant, spent from having given their all to flavor the dish.<\/p>\n
Classic Senegalese food in Harlem. Read on…. Continue reading <\/a>
\nThe tomato sauce in which the fish had been stewed was served on the side.<\/p>\n<\/a>
\nSticking with West African specialties (they also have Caribbean cuisine), we ordered Maffe (you might see maf\u00e9), lamb stew (the menu also offers a smoked turkey alternative) in a tomato\/peanut butter sauce. Their recipe isn\u2019t overwhelmingly peanutty but it was tasty. No surprise that the lamb was so tender it was falling off the bone.
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