Tigadeguena

"Tigadeguena" is a popular dish in Mali which is chicken in peanut sauce. It was definitely my first pick when I was searching for a dish to make for class the next week. My undying love for chicken was also a great motivator to creating this dish and so I immediately set out to find the ingredients in good time.

Chicken in peanut sauce

I was up early that Friday morning and prepared the kitchen with all the essentials I needed to cook. I had bought a whole chicken a day before and had it cut into pieces by the butcher (my knifing skills are not that impressive). I fried the chicken in a little oil till it was brown on both sides and removed it from the pan to set it aside. I then fried onion and garlic in the same pan and put in some tomato paste for added flavor. I then returned the chicken back into pan and added the peanut sauce which gave off a tantalizing aroma. Finally, I added some water and spices to taste and let the chicken simmer for a while until it was ready. The chicken is traditionally served with plantains or a plate of rice. A more detailed recipe can be found here along with other dishes widely enjoyed in Mali.

I discovered other great dishes from Mali worth trying out:

Maasa- these are sweet millet fritters served as a snack or as an accompaniment to soup.

Akara- this is a dish of fried bean balls.

Couscous de Timbuktu- these are granules of wheat cooked by steaming.

Meni-Meniyong- this is a sesame honey sweet.

Kulikuli- these are deep fried peanut biscuits

Djablani- it is a popular West African beverage made of hibiscus juice and ginger. Perfect for quenching one's thirst under the scorching Sahara sun!

From Left: Maasa, Akara, Couscous de Timbuktu, Meni Meniyong, Kulikuli and Djablani