~694 cal · 74g protein · 25g carbs · 31g fat (estimated, per serving)
🍽️
Chicken smothered in lemony onion sauce over rice
🇸🇳 Casamance
Yassa was born in the green Casamance, where lime trees and onion fields meet, and conquered every Senegalese table from there. The onions must outweigh the chicken — cooked until they collapse into a sweet-sharp sauce that demands rice.
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Make it yours
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
Ingredients
Serves 4 —
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2.5 lbs chicken legs and thighs
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5 — yes, five yellow onions, thickly sliced
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3 lemons (juice)
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2 limes
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3 tbsp Dijon-style mustard
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5 cloves garlic, crushed
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1 Scotch bonnet, whole
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2 bay leaves
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1/4 cup neutral oil
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for 4 broken or jasmine rice, to serve
Instructions
1
Marinate the chicken (or mushrooms and tofu) and ALL the onions in citrus juice, mustard, garlic, and salt — 4 hours minimum, overnight ideally.
2
Lift out the chicken and brown it hard on a grill or in a skillet until charred in spots.
3
Fry the drained onions in oil, slow and patient, 15 minutes until soft and golden.
4
Return the chicken with the marinade, bay, and the whole Scotch bonnet; cover and simmer 25 minutes.
5
Rescue the bonnet, season, and serve over rice — onions first, generously.
Casamance tradition, now national.
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🌏 While it simmers — know your destination
📍
Casamance. The green south that gave Senegal its lemon-onion yassa.
🗺️
Senegal. West Africa’s Atlantic table, where teranga means hospitality.
🌍
Africa. Fifty-four countries of tagines, stews, and fire-kissed grills.
The story behind this dish is up top — worth a read while the pot works.
👩🍳
Richard Moore & Kelsey Tucker
Recipes cooked, tested, and researched by the creators of Spin the Globe. How we build our recipes →
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