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Chubbagin Lélé et Raabie
Chubbagin Lélé et Raabie is a traditional Mauritanian recipe for a classic one-pot dish of fish and rice with vegetables in a tomato and chilli sauce. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Mauritanian version of: Chubbagin Lélé et Raabie.
prep time
20 minutes
cook time
60 minutes
Total Time:
80 minutes
Serves:
4
Rating: 
Tags : Wild FoodChilli RecipesVegetable RecipesMauritania Recipes
This is a classic
Mauritanian one-pot stew of fish, rice and vegetables that, in effect, is the Mauritanian version of
Senegalese Cëebu Jen.
Ingredients:
1kg whole fish
2kg rice
400ml oil
1 aubergine (eggplant), halved lengthways and cut into chunks
2 carrots, cut into chunks
1 small cabbage, cut into wedges
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
1 onion, coarsely chopped
5 tbsp
parsley
10 dried
piri-piri chillies (or to taste)
120ml tomato purée
3 garlic cloves
1 smoked and dried fish
60g
bissap (hibiscus) leaves, trimmed of stems
Maggi cube
salt and black pepper, to taste
Method:
Wash, gut and de-scale the fish, removing the gills. Chop two of the chillies, add to a mortar along with some salt, black pepper, 2 garlic cloves and the parsley. Pound to a paste, then, using a sharp knife cut a pocket in both sides of he fish. Use the chilli and parsley mixture to stuff into these pockets.
Add the oil to a large pan and when hot add he fish and fry until crisped on both sides (about 10 minutes). Remove the fish with a slotted spoon and set aside. Meanwhile, mix the tomato purée with 200ml water to form a thick paste. Add this to the oil in the pan along with the onion and a little salt. Stir to mix then return the fish to the pot.
Add all the vegetables then wash and flake the dried fish, removing as many bones as you can. Stir the flaked, dried fish into the pan then add the remaining hot chillies. Tie the bissap leaves into a bundle and add to the stew. Part-cover the pan (about 3/4) then reduce
Meanwhile, wash and pick over your rice. Either steam in a separate pan or wrap in a cloth and the this to the lid of the pot, allowing the rice to steam inside the main pan when you secure the lid on it. Cook for about 30 minutes then remove the fish and vegetables and place in a bowl to keep warm (discard the bissap leaves). Open the rice and stir into the remaining sauce. Season with 1 Maggi or stock cube and stir to combine. Continue cooking until the rice is tender and the mixture is almost dry.
Transfer the rice to a serving dish then place the fish in the centre of the dish and arrange the rice around the outside.
Typically this is served with a condiment (nocose) made from 3 garlic cloves, black pepper, 2 Maggi cubes, a little slivered onion all pounded together into a paste. If desired the bissap leaves can also be pounded into this condiment.
Give everyone a spoon and let them eat the dish. Serve with bissap tea.
