Groundnut Basin · Peanut Stew
Mafé
Photo: Nicolas PHULPIN / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Peanuts aren't even native to West Africa — Portuguese traders brought them from South America in the 16th century, and colonial administrators later turned the land around Kaolack into groundnut farms.
Beef, lamb or chicken simmers in a thick, roasted-peanut sauce with tomato and chili until the oil rises to the surface, served over rice. Kaolack sits at the center of Senegal's 'groundnut basin,' the region that still grows most of the peanuts the dish depends on.
Why it's made this way: Colonial-era policy turned the land around Kaolack into Senegal's dominant peanut-growing region, and the crop became so central to daily life that this peanut stew is now considered a national dish.
More from Senegal
Part of World of Street Food — 3443 dishes from 118 countries.
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