Saka Saka

Recipes……… Saka Saka

AN ODE TO CONVIVIALITY SOUTH OF THE SAHARA - GENEROSITY AND POSITIVITY THROUGH RECIPES, STORIES AND CULINARY TRADITIONS.

In this vibrant and generous celebration of food, friendship and conviviality, photographer Aline Princet and Anto Cocagne, a young chef from Gabon, invite musicians, writers, artists and creatives from all over African, south of the Sahara, to share their recipes and bring the spotlight to focus on the rich diversity of African food. The 80 authentic recipes showcased include the best dishes from Gabon, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Congo and Ethiopia, and with each recipe comes information on its origins, its key ingredients and tips and advice for the home cook on how to cook them to perfection. They use fruit, grains, vegetables, spices and are delicious, healthy, often vegetarian or vegan and some gluten-free. Interwoven throughout are interviews with the artists who talk about what African food means to them.

Images and text from Saka Saka by Anto Cocagne & Aline Princet, photography by Aline Princet. Murdoch Books, $45.

COCONUT RICE WITH FRUIT TARTARE

SEA BASS CARPACCIO WITH GREEN MANGO

INGREDIENTS

METHOD

Difficulty: easy Preparation: 30 minutes Cooking: 45 minutes

SERVES 6

• 200g Speculaas biscuits (Dutch spiced biscuits) • 1/3 cup (80g) unsalted softened butter • 2 cups (500ml) coconut milk • 100g parboiled long-grain rice • 40g caster (superfine) sugar • 1 vanilla bean • 40g white chocolate • ¼ pomegranate • ½ mango • ¼ pineapple • Thinly sliced zest of 1 lime • Small edible flowers, such as coriander (cilantro) flowers or pansies

1. Crush the Speculaas biscuits in a bowl, add the softened butter and mix well. Press the biscuit mix into round tart rings to make the bases. Set aside. 2. Combine half the coconut milk in a pot with the rice and sugar. Split the vanilla bean lengthways and scrape the seeds into the pot, then add the empty bean. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring constantly, until the rice has absorbed all of the coconut milk. Gradually add the remaining coconut milk and cook until the grains of rice are mushy. 3. Add the white chocolate to the hot rice and stir until it is completely melted. Remove the vanilla bean and leave to cool. 4. Remove the seeds from the pomegranate. Peel and dice the mango and pineapple. Put the pomegranate seeds and diced fruit into a bowl, add the lime zest and mix together. 5. Assemble the dessert like a cheesecake by topping the biscuit bases with the cold coconut rice. Decorate with the diced fruit and a few edible flowers. Serve chilled.

INGREDIENTS

Difficulty: easy Preparation: 45 minutes

SERVES 6

• 3 whole sea bass or 6 x 150g sea bass fillets • 2 tbsp vegetable oil • 2 green mangoes • ½ red onion • 1 lime • ¼ pomegranate • 3 sprigs coriander (cilantro) • Salt and Penja peppercorns • 3 tbsp mango purée • 1 tsp ntorolo • A few croutons • A few baby spinach leaves

METHOD

1. Wash the bass fillets and remove the skin and bones. Brush them with a little oil, then lay them flat in a container before putting them in the freezer for 30 minutes to firm up. 2. To prepare the mango relish, peel and finely dice the mangoes and red onion. Zest and juice the lime. Remove the seeds from the pomegranate. Finely chop the coriander. 3. In a bowl, mix the diced green mango, red onion, lime zest, pomegranate seeds and chopped coriander. Season with salt and pepper. 4. Make a dressing with the lime juice, mango purée and ntorolo and season with salt and pepper. Mix the dressing with the mango relish. 5. Remove the fish from the freezer, cut it into very thin slices and arrange on a serving plate. Serve immediately with the mango relish, small croutons, baby spinach leaves and a few Penja peppercorns.

1. Clean the chicken the day before, or at least 2 hours prior to cooking, and remove the breasts and thighs from the bones. Set the carcass aside for the sauce. Juice the lemon.

2. Coat the chicken pieces with the lemon juice and nokoss and season with salt and pepper. Leave to marinate in the fridge.

3. To make the sauce, break up the chicken carcass. Heat the oil in a pot and sweat the red nokoss for 3 minutes. Add the pieces of chicken carcass and brown for 20 minutes over medium heat.

4. Stir the peanut butter and 2 cups (500ml) water into the chicken and red nokoss mixture. Add the whole chilli and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes. The sauce will gradually thicken. Season to taste.

5. For the crust, finely crush the roasted peanuts and mix them with the breadcrumbs and a pinch of salt and pepper on a plate. Mix the beaten eggs with 1 tbsp water in a shallow bowl. Put the flour on another plate. Coat the chicken pieces in the flour, then dip in the beaten eggs and coat with the peanut breadcrumbs.

6. Preheat the oven to 150°C. Heat the oil in a large fry pan and brown the crumbed chicken pieces. Transfer the chicken to a tray and bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until cooked through.

Serve the chicken and sauce with rice, banana fufu or cassava tubers cooked in water.

PEANUT-CRUSTED CHICKEN

INGREDIENTS

Difficulty: medium Preparation: 45 minutes Cooking: 1 hour 20 minutes + 2 hour resting time

SERVES 4

• 1.5kg free-range chicken • 1 lemon • 1 tbsp red nokoss • Salt and pepper • 3 tbsp vegetable oil FOR THE CRUST

• 1/3 cup (50g) roasted peanuts • ½ cup (50g) breadcrumbs • Salt and pepper • 2 eggs • 1/3 cup (50g) plain (all-purpose) flour FOR THE SAUCE

• 3 tbsp vegetable oil • 2 tbsp red nokoss • 3 tbsp peanut butter • 1 mild/sweet chilli • Salt and pepper

SPICED PINEAPPLE WITH CASSAVA CRUMBLE

INGREDIENTS

Difficulty: easy Preparation: 30 minutes Cooking: 1 hour 15 minutes

SERVES 4

1 pineapple FOR THE CRUMBLE

• 50g garri (fermented, dried and ground cassava) • 50g plain (all-purpose) flour • 50g ground African pistachios or pepitas • 50g softened butter • ¼ cup (50g) light brown sugar

METHOD

FOR THE CARAMEL

• 1 tsp fresh ginger • 1 vanilla bean • 100g white (granulated) sugar • 50g butter • ½ tsp ground cinnamon • 2 star anise • 4 tsp gold rum • 100ml pineapple juice

1. Peel the pineapple and cut it into quarters without removing the core.

2. For the caramel, peel the ginger and cut it into thin strips. Split the vanilla bean in half lengthways and scrape out the seeds.

3. Pour the sugar into a heavy-based pot and cook over medium heat until caramelised. Carefully add the butter and stir to combine, then remove from the heat. Add the cinnamon, ginger strips, star anise, vanilla bean and seeds, then mix again. Add the pineapple pieces and cook for 10 minutes on each side. 4. Deglaze the caramel with the rum and flambé it, then pour in the pineapple juice. Cook over low heat, turning the pineapple pieces regularly, for 45 minutes.

5. Preheat the oven to 180°C. To make the crumble, mix all the ingredients together in a bowl, spread the mixture on a baking tray covered with baking paper and bake for 15 minutes. Leave to cool and set aside. Sprinkle the crumble on a plate, then place a piece of warm pineapple on top and drizzle with the caramel.