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Thiébou niébé
Tomato rice with black-eyed peas
Thiébou niébé (ceebu ñebbe): Senegalese tomato rice cooked with black-eyed peas and vegetables
Thiébou niébé is the bean version of Senegal's famous rice dish, cooked in Dakar and Saint-Louis homes as a cheaper weekday lunch and on days without fish. Black-eyed peas, cabbage, carrot, aubergine, cassava and pumpkin are simmered in a rich tomato sauce scented with garlic, parsley and chilli; the vegetables come out to be served on top, and the rice cooks in the remaining sauce until it is red, fluffy and crusted at the bottom. A generous portion gives about 22 g of protein from the black-eyed peas and rice. The peas need 6 hours of soaking first, which is not counted in the times. The most common mistake is adding too much liquid for the rice, which makes it mushy; measure the sauce left in the pot before you add the rice. Chef's tip: don't stir the rice once it is covered; the crisp layer that forms on the bottom, the xooñ, is the part everyone fights over.
- Total time
- 95 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the beans and sauce
- 9 oz dried black-eyed peassoaked for 6 hours, drained
- ⅔ oz flat-leaf parsley
- 5 cloves garlic
- 1 scotch bonnet chillikeep whole for gentle heat
- 4 tbsp groundnut oil
- 2 onionschopped
- 3 ½ oz tomato purée (concentrate)
- 6 ¼ cups water
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- ½ oz tamarind pulp (optional)for a sour note, served on the side
For the vegetables
- 9 oz cassavapeeled, woody core removed, in large chunks
- 2 carrotshalved
- ¼ white cabbagein 2 wedges
- 1 auberginequartered
- 9 oz pumpkinin large chunks, skin on
For the rice
- 14 oz broken jasmine riceor ordinary long-grain rice; rinsed and drained
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Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Cover the drained 9 oz dried black-eyed peas with fresh water in a pot, bring to the boil and simmer for 25 minutes, until tender but not falling apart. Drain.
25 minStep 2: Pound or blend ⅔ oz flat-leaf parsley, 5 cloves garlic and a pinch of ¼ tsp salt to a rough paste (the rof).
3 minStep 3: Heat 4 tbsp groundnut oil in a large heavy pot over a medium heat. Fry 2 onions for 8 minutes until soft and golden, then add the rof and fry for 1 minute.
9 minStep 4: Stir in 3 ½ oz tomato purée (concentrate) with a splash of water and fry, stirring, for 5 minutes, until it darkens to brick red and the oil starts to separate. This removes the raw, tinny taste.
5 minStep 5: Add 6 ¼ cups water, the rest of 1 ¾ tsp salt, 1 tsp ground black pepper and 1 scotch bonnet chilli and bring to the boil. Add 9 oz cassava and 2 carrots and simmer for 10 minutes, then add ¼ white cabbage, 1 aubergine and 9 oz pumpkin and simmer for 15–20 minutes more, until every vegetable is tender to a knife.
28 minStep 6: Lift the vegetables and the chilli out onto a dish, cover and keep warm. Add the cooked peas to the sauce and simmer for 5 minutes.
5 minStep 7: Measure the sauce: you need about 750 ml left in the pot for the rice (pour the extra into a jug to serve on the side, or top up with water). Stir in 14 oz broken jasmine rice, bring to the boil, then cover tightly with foil and the lid and cook on the lowest heat for 20–25 minutes without stirring, until the rice is tender and has absorbed the sauce.
25 minStep 8: Turn the heat up for the last 3 minutes to crisp the bottom. Spoon the red rice onto a large platter, arrange the vegetables on top and serve with the reserved sauce, the chilli for those who want it, and the ½ oz tamarind pulp thinned with a little water if using.
3 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 760 kcal
- Protein
- 22 g
- Carbs
- 138 g
- Fat
- 15 g
- Fibre
- 16 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does thiébou niébé take?
- About 95 minutes in total: 25 minutes to prepare and 70 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of flat-leaf parsley?
- Curly parsley or coriander, same amount.
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
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