Seafood rules the menu in coastal The Gambia. 

Obviously, pork is not on the menu for 95 percent of Gambians who are of the Muslim faith. For many Gambians afternoon lunch is the most important meal of the day served in a large shared food platters with everyone eating with their well washed right-hand only.

The Gambia is almost totally surrounded by Senegal except for 49 miles or 80 km of coastline along the North Atlantic Ocean. Gambia River is 700 miles or 1,120 km long, flowing westward through The Gambia into the Atlantic Ocean. The Gambia River almost divides The Gambia in half lengthwise and looks like a lizard with a very long tail. 

The Gambia is by far the smallest country on the African mainland but the food is big on flavor.

 

Seafood Spinach Stew From Gambia 

 

Ingredients

1 pound fresh peeled deveined shrimp

1 pound cod fish

1/2 pound lobster meat

1 pound crab meat

1 tablespoon crayfish powder

1 cup palm oil

5 cups fresh spinach, chopped

2 hot chili peppers, diced

2 large onions, chopped

2 tablespoons groundnut paste

2 maggi cubes

Pepper to taste

3 cups water

 

Directions

In a large pot over medium high heat, add palm oil and onions saute 3 minutes. Add crayfish powder, groundnut paste to water and mix well.

Add mixture to the pot then add hot peppers and spices stir well. Simmer on medium-low for 20 minutes. Add spinach stir, cover and simmer for 10 minutes longer. Add seafood, simmer 10 minutes and serve with rice.

Did you know?

With a population of over 2.1 million, almost 60 percent of the population is under the age of 25.  Officially The belongs in front of Gambia since 1964. The Permanent Committee on Geographical Names says in May 1964 the Gambian prime minister's office instructed that The Gambia should be used with a capital T. One of the reasons they gave was that The Gambia could be confused with Zambia, which was a new name to the international community at the time.