Senegalese Chicken Yassa (Stewed Chicken)

One of the quickest and easiest Senegalese dishes to prepare is chicken yassa. The chicken is marinated in a mixture of groundnut oil, onions, lime juice, vinegar, mustard, and mustard seeds, and served with a simple white rice.

This dish is particularly satisfying accompanied with freshly squeezed orange juice.

Enjoy this classic chicken yassa recipe below!

Senegalese Chicken Yassa

Chef’s Pencil Staff

A lot of onions are used in this Senegalese Chicken Yassa (Yassa Poulet). Onions are the life of the party in this main meal, so if you're not a fan, please make sure you chop or blend them first.

4.92 from 46 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Total Time 2 hours hrs

Course Main Course

Cuisine African

Servings 2 servings

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 10 chicken breasts/drumsticks whichever you prefer
• 2 large red onions
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp crushed red pepper
• 1 tsp ground red pepper
• 1 tsp crushed black pepper
• 1 tsp chicken seasoning powder
• 2 carrot sticks
• 2 stock cubes
• 2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp iodized salt
• 1 cup distilled white vinegar
• 5 cloves garlic chopped
• 1 tbsp grated ginger
• 3 tbsp regular yellow mustard
• 1 scotch bonnet pepper
• 1 lemon
• 4 tbsp vegetable (peanut) oil
• 1 Knorr seasoning cube (Or any seasoning powder of your choice)

Instructions

 

• Rinse the chicken. Drain and rub all pieces with 1/2 a lemon and 1/2 tsp kosher salt. Set aside.
• Slice the onions, scotch bonnet pepper, grate the ginger and garlic and set aside.
• Put 1/2 cup peanut oil, the juice of 1/2 a lemon, mustard, 1 Knorr seasoning cube, white vinegar, and the other dry spices in a bowl and mix thoroughly.
• Add the onions, garlic, and ginger to the marinade. Mix thoroughly.
• Add the chicken pieces to the marinade with the lemon and salt and mix.
• Make sure the chicken is completely covered by the onion mix. Cover with foil or cling film and let marinate in the fridge for 1 hour 45 minutes or overnight if you have the time.
• Remove from the fridge. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit (200 Celsius).

  Remove the chicken pieces, removing any ingredients sticking to the chicken. Place the chicken in a baking pan line with foil and let brown for 25 minutes.
• Drain the liquid from the onions using a sieve. Heat 1 tbsp canola oil in a pot or large frying pan. Add the onions and let cook over medium heat for 15 minutes.
• Add the strained liquid to the onions and let cook over low-medium heat for another 15-20 minutes.
• Remove chicken from the oven and add to the simmering sauce. Let cook another 15 minutes over medium heat till the chicken juices run clear when pierced (at the 5-minute mark, taste for seasoning, if needed, add remaining Knorr seasoning cube).

  Turn off the heat. Let stand for 5 minutes. Serve with white rice.

Notes

Keyword yassa

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Chef's Pencil Staff

Our editorial team is responsible for the research, creation, and publishing of in-house studies, original reports and articles on food trends, industry news and guides.