EXPLORING THE IMPORTANCE OF FOOD CULTURE
A CASE STUDY OF CEEBU JEN IN SENEGAL
The definition of food culture can be described as the beliefs, attitudes, and practices related to producing and consuming food.
How does culture impact food?
Food culture and traditions around the world is influenced by factors such as the local landscape and weather and the history of the country people.
Why is food culture important?
Food culture involves sharing food with friends, family, and the wider community and has an impact on all of these:
FOOD AND IDENTITY
food plays an important role in each person’s own identity. Preparing, sharing, and eating cultural foods is both a physical act and also a symbolic act that links the individual intrinsically with their personal family history.
FOOD AND COMMUNITY
cultural foods are still a powerful way of creating social bonds with the people we care about.
When we sit down at the dinner table with our whole family or a group of close friends, it elevates the food that we’re eating, however humble, to something special. Communal eating boosts social bonding and feelings of well-being, helping us to feel part of a community.
FOOD AS A WAY TO SAFEGUARD TRADITIONS
Traditional recipes, passed down through the generations, help to preserve the history and habits of the people who cooked them.
for example, Immigrants carry the food customs and recipes of their homeland with them wherever they go, helping them to deal with homesickness and pass their culture on to the generations that follow as an important reminder of their shared history, beliefs, and values.
7. CEEBU JËN IN SENEGAL
Ceebu jën (Thieboudienne) is the national dish of Senegal in West Africa. The recipe originated in fishing villages on Saint-Louis Island and is today eaten across the country and in other nations in the region, including Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, and The Gambia.
Ceebu jë recipes are passed down from mother to daughter. Every region and community puts a different spin on the dish, but the essential ingredients include fish, broken rice, tomatoes, onions, and other seasonal vegetables. Higher quality fish and finer vegetables are used for special occasions or when a family is preparing ceebu jë for guests.
At home, the dish is served in one large bowl (a bolus) and eaten with one’s hands or using a piece of bread to scoop up the rice. Ceebu jë is widely considered to be a symbol of Senegalese terranga (hospitality)
Historically, tiep is commonly attributed to the city of Saint-Louis , in the nineteenth century. The name of the dish comes from Wolof words meaning 'rice' (ceeb) and 'fish' (jën). [2] In Pulaar it is known as maaro e liddi ('rice and fish'). It is served on large trays with the rice on the bottom and the fish, usually white grouper (Epinephelus aeneus), and the vegetables, many of them whole, placed in the center.
Traditionally it is eaten in a large communal dish with the hand. It is also the symbol of Senegalese terranga (hospitality): family, visiting friends and guests gather around a single dish (called a bolus) from which everyone eats using a spoon (couddou Pulaar) or a piece of bread.
Try it for yourself: If you’re lucky enough to be invited into a Senegalese household to share a bowl of ceebu jën, remember that there are certain customs and etiquettes associated with eating the dish – for example, you must hold the bowl with your left hand and use your right hand for eating. Variations of fish, meat and chicken ceebu jë are widely available at restaurants in Dakar and across the country.
ENJOY!!!