When Pierre Thiam describes the traditional lunch he enjoyed as a kid growing up in Dakar, the capital of Senegal, a thick coating of nostalgia and pride cover his voice.
“The city comes to a stop because lunch is the most important meal, and it’s an elaborate meal,” said the chef, restaurateur and cookbook author from his Oakland home. “I would stop school, my father would stop work, and we would come home and enjoy lunch as a family.”
And how could you not, when Thieboudienne, the national dish of Senegal, was on the menu? He described fish stuffed with herbs, cooked in a rich tomato broth perfumed with fermented conch. Then there’s the rice: cooked in the bright red liquid until a crunchy crust forms on the bottom. Tamarind sauce brought a final acidic flourish.
Thiam, who owns the acclaimed West African restaurant Teranga in New York and serves as the executive chef at Nok in Lagos among other restaurants, understands that the complexity and sophistication of a dish like Thieboudienne might come off as a mismatch in the context of the customarily brief American lunch. But he insists it’s still possible to infuse the flavors of West African cuisine, and the spirit that drives it, into daily life outside the region.
His new cookbook, “Simply West African: Easy, Joyful Recipes for Every Kitchen” (Clarkson Potter), is Thiam’s fourth title in what he describes as an educational and celebratory continuum of Senegalese and West African cuisine. In it, Thiam meditates on the bliss of fully engaging with the senses, cooking intuitively and having fun in the kitchen. He co-wrote the book with his wife, Lisa Katayama.
The recipes in “Simply West African” sing with punchy flavors and vibrant colors, but are welcoming to those new to the style of cooking in their simple preparations. According to Thiam, sauce is king in Senegalese and West African cooking, so he recommends mastering those for maximum flexibility and enjoyment. The Back-to-Bahia Tomato-Lime-Coconut sauce, inspired by the Brazilian bobó de camarão, is a sumptuous blend of mashed cassava and coconut milk studded with tomatoes, bell peppers and onions. It can be ladled over rice or vegetables, or used to bathe shrimp or fish for a meal more reminiscent of the traditional Brazilian dish.
“Simply West African” is the fourth cookbook by Pierre Thiam, a Bay Area resident.
Provided by Clarkson PotterOr go for the Ndambe Nachos, which employs a hearty Senegalese stew of black-eyed peas, butternut squash and okra called ndambe as the primary source of protein. Distribute the stew over chips (Thiam recommends fonio chips, based on an ancient grain from West Africa, for added nutrients), pile on cheddar cheese and finish it off with moyo, a Senegalese sauce reminiscent of pico de gallo. Thiam’s version strays from tradition with the suggestion of Dijon mustard to balance out the richness.
“I want readers to see that this cuisine can be done at home, here in the U.S., and I’m showing it through the food I cook at home with my family,” Thiam said, “and with ingredients that I buy around the corner from here at the farmers’ market, or at Berkeley Bowl.” The farmers’ markets in particular, he said, remind him of the abundant markets in Senegal, where he has fond memories accompanying his mother and aunties to pick fresh produce for the day’s meal.
It didn’t take Thiam long to feel at home in the Bay Area. He relocated to the West Coast three years ago from New York City, where he’d lived for 34 years after moving from Dakar as a university student. What was meant to be a mere stopover on his way to Ohio to continue his studies in physics and chemistry took a sharp turn when he got robbed while visiting a friend. In order to earn back his stolen cash, he took a job busing tables at a restaurant.
But he was drawn to the kitchen environment and stayed, continuing to learn the ways of fine dining in the United States. Once, he prepared a Senegalese dish for a family-style staff dinner, and realized the obligation he felt to showcase Senegalese food to foreign audiences as a chef. His multifaceted career has seen him opening restaurants and operating Yolélé, a social enterprise that empowers small-scale West African farmers.
When his wife, Katayama, got pregnant in 2020, they moved to the East Bay, settling in El Cerrito before moving to Oakland. Thiam delighted in the similarities between West African cuisine and that of Katayama’s homeland in Japan as they wrote “Simply West African” together. Upon learning about onigiri, or Japanese rice balls, he immediately made a connection to West African versions, like omotuo in Ghana and tuwo shinkafa in Nigeria.
“The flavoring is different, but I thought, ‘I could play with this,’” he recalled. “My daughter, when she was much younger, she liked onigiri, and now she can have it different ways.” In the book, Thiam’s signature rice balls feature pumpkin purée for a Senegalese flair. He suggests dunking them in mafé, a staple peanut sauce.
Above all, Thiam said, his goal in “Simply West African” is to reveal the freedom found in cooking Senegalese food, which encourages creativity and improvisation.
“If you take the time to communicate with the ingredients, smell them, touch them and then listen to that voice that tells you, ‘Hey, add some heat, add some spice,’ it takes you beyond the book,” he said. “The recipes are guidelines, but once you really are in that zone and being playful, then you can just go and share that with the world.”
Reach Tamerra Griffin: food@sfchronicle.com
Steamed Cod Liboke is Pierre Thiam’s riff on a traditional dish from the Congo, as seen in “Simply West African.”
Courtesy Evan Sung/Clarkson PotterSteamed Cod Liboke
Serves 2
Liboke, which originated in the Congo, is easy to prepare and fun to serve. It uses a method known as en papillote, in which the food (usually fish) is wrapped in a little parcel, allowing it to steam in its own juice. In West Africa, the fish is typically wrapped in banana leaves, but you can use aluminum foil or parchment paper and get the same effect.
1 cup thinly sliced yellow onion
2 (6-ounce) cod fillets
4 plum tomatoes, chopped
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 thin rounds of lemon
1 tablespoon olive or vegetable oil
Preheat the oven to 450°F.
Cut one 36-inch-long sheet of aluminum foil into 2 large rectangles (each 18 inches long). Fold each of the rectangles in half widthwise, then open it up. In the center of one side, layer half of the onion. Place one cod fillet on the onion, then top with half each of the tomatoes, garlic, and ginger. Season with half the thyme, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper, then top with 2 lemon rounds. Drizzle with half of the olive oil. Fold the other side over and crimp the edges tightly closed. Repeat with the remaining vegetables and fish on the other piece of foil. Place the fish packages on a sheet pan and bake until the fish is cooked through, about 10 minutes. Transfer each fish packet to a plate and serve immediately, allowing each diner to open the packet themselves.
Red Red Red is a comforting bean-tomato stew from “Simply West African” by Pierre Thiam.
Courtesy Evan Sung/Clarkson PotterRed Red Red (Red Bean-Tomato Stew)
Serves 6
This is my go-to, curl-up-on-the-couch-and-read-a-book comfort dish. The traditional version, called red red, is made with black-eyed peas, tomatoes, and red palm oil. I call my rendition red red red because I use red beans instead of black-eyed peas, which give this a richness of flavor and texture that you’re sure to fall in love with. This is a great option for vegans as well as for omnivores who want a hearty, healthy meal that is relatively hands-off in its preparation. It’s also great as a side dish with cooked rice or plantains.
2 cups dried red beans or 3 (15.5-ounce) cans, rinsed and drained
½ cup sustainably sourced red palm oil or vegetable oil
2 cups chopped yellow onion
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 (28-ounce) can tomato purée or crushed tomatoes
1 habanero or Scotch bonnet chili, left whole
(optional)
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
½ teaspoon fine sea salt, plus more as needed
½ pound smoked mackerel, skin off, bones removed, and cut into small pieces (optional)
In a large saucepan, add 8 to 10 cups of water and the red beans. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low and simmer until the beans are soft, about 45 minutes. Drain and set aside. (If using canned beans, skip this step.)
While the beans are cooking, in a separate large pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and sauté until softened, 5 to 8 minutes. Add the bell pepper, garlic, and ginger, and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste. Reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally to prevent the vegetables from scorching, until the paste starts to turn dark red, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes, habanero (if using), curry powder, paprika, and salt, and stir well. Add the beans and the smoked mackerel (if using) to the pot and stir gently. Raise the heat to high and return to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer until most of the liquid is absorbed, 10 more minutes. Remove the habanero and set it aside. Taste and adjust the seasoning before serving.
Reprinted with permission from Simply West African by Pierre Thiam with Lisa Katayama, copyright Pierre Thiam © 2023. Photographs by Evan Sung. Published by Clarkson Potter, a division of Penguin Random House, LLC
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