Yolele! Recipes from the Heart of Senegal

by Pierre Thiam

Book Overview

Situated on the western coast of Africa, Senegal is a multicultural country with culinary influences from all over the world. Author Pierre Thiam grew up in its capital, Dakar, surrounded by bright, flavorful ingredients and passionate home cooks. His debut cookbook celebrates the art of creating family meals using organic, local produce and farm-fresh meats and seafood. An accessible and delicious introduction to the next big thing: African cuisine...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1891105388
• ISBN13: 9781891105388
• Release Date: August 2008
• Publisher: Lake Isle Press
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 8.3" x 10.0"

Customer Reviews

Yolele...Let the Good Times Roll

I was traveling in California and caught an interview with the author, Pierre Thiam, on A Splendid Table on NPR...having visited Senegal about two years ago, I was drawn to the concept of this cookbook and can tell you the recipes in it are the real deal and representative of what one would experience in that wonderful country. I cannot wait to try many of these recipes out and serve these colorful dishes to my friends.

Great cookbook

This is a great cookbook. My daughter is going to live in Senegal and I heard about this on NPR's splendid Table show. Yolele! Recipes From the Heart of Senegal It has lovely pictures, easy-to-follow directions, and I read it cover-to-cover before I mailed it to her. I made a couple of the recipes first and was pleased.

Simply Splendid!

I've been hooked on traditional Senegalese cuisine since 1995 when I experienced the very simple yet utterly delectable yassa, a dish of grilled chicken or fish with coarsely-sliced onions and fresh lime. As I explore the pages (and recipes like fonio taboule and oyster elinkine) of this beautifully written cookbook with stunning photographs, I get transported back to my beloved Casamance in Southern Senegal. I'll take great pleasure in cooking it into my world.

Wonderful Recipes From A Wonderful Place

I am married to a beautiful Dakarois and have visited this magical city, met and lived among its wonderful people, and eaten its extraordinary food. My wife and I have been looking for a great cookbook that will allow her (and me) to revisit the comfort food of her home. This is that cookbook, filled with great recipes that put us right back in Dakar and photos by the super-talented Adam Bartos that will make you feel as if you are there. I've told many people that the colors in West Africa seem more alive -- this book, the food shots and the shots of life in Senegal fully capture those vibrant, eye-dazzling colors. Virtually everything is here one could want, from a simple lamb/venison recipe cooked like the small stands in Dakar that specialize in the dishes to the everyday beverages such as bissap (called sorrel in many places) that nearly everyone drinks. My wife is a very good cook and insists on a few things I want to mention to those who buy this book: if you want to spice your food like the Dakarois look for a bouillion cube by the brand name "Jumbo" at African/International markets. Pierre Thiam only asks for chicken bouillion cubes but every West African I know keeps the Jumbo cubes in their pantry and uses them for everything. Bissap, like tea, can be made and served many different ways but my wife claims that she has never known anyone to sweeten the drink with anything other than sugar. Thiam calls for honey. At any rate GET THIS BOOK! It will introduce you to a wonderful cuisine and people. The photos are award quality and Thiam has a snappy prose style that is fun to read. His stories are engrossing as well. All in all, one of the great cookbooks!

A Beautiful Book

I just received this book and am very pleased. The meals are interesting and yet also seem to be very straight forward and uncomplicated. The photography really captures the essence of an everyday lifestyle which is friendly and unpretentious. I have yet to make one of recipes but am looking forward to trying any one of them as they all look delicious!