Jollof rice calories
Disclosure statement Fatima Fall Niang does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond jollof rice calories academic appointment. In particular, Senegalese, Nigerians and Ghanaians claim ownership.
And each believes their recipe surpasses all others. In a bid to settle the issue we explored the subject in our book. The word jollof refers to an ancient kingdom that was a part of Senegal between the 12th and the 13th centuries. Between 1860 and 1940 the French colonisers replaced existing food crops with broken rice imported from Indochina. In time, broken rice came to be much more prized by the Senegalese than whole rice grain. Saint-Louisians who set about creating something completely new. Ceebu jën consists of rice and fish, accompanied by vegetables and sometimes tomatoes.
As it happens in history, when an art reaches a certain fame or notoriety, its paternity becomes an object of controversy. This is what has indeed happened with jollof rice. Colonial legacy The first act of the settlers was to make all those disconnected from agricultural activities dependent on rice. This included the men and women who had come to try to make their fortune in the markets of Saint-Louis, one of the gateways to the West and, for a good period, the capital of French West Africa.
If we add teachers, various agents of the administration and the military, we can better understand the pernicious process of rice promotion. Overflowing in urban centres, rice was consumed in practically all of the colony of Senegal. The success of the rice promotion strategy resulted in the entrenchment of an economy that became increasingly dependent on crops preferred by the colonisers. To this day efforts continue to be made to grow rice in Casamance and the Saint-Louis region. At the same time, the exploitation of the market garden areas of Niayes and Gandiol contributed to meeting the population’s need for vegetables.
Another intriguing part of the history of the dish is the myth that’s developed over centuries around the role of a Senegalese cook called Penda Mbaye who is regularly attached to the name of rice with fish. Although no one disputes the connection between the dish and Penda Mbaye, serious information on her identity, on the place and time she lived and on the conditions in which the dish was created is cruelly lacking. This is why we have stated in our book that she left history very quickly to take her place in legend. To understand the importance of ceebu jën in the diet and imagination of the Senegalese, it would be wise to point out that its attractiveness can’t be reduced to its nutritional value or its intrinsic delicacy. This culinary art is closely linked to a know-how and a way of life. The women of Saint Louis, a port city in the northern part of Senegal, are singularly credited with remarkable know-how in this area.
