1
Season and fry fish
Season fish with salt and pepper. Fry in hot oil until browned on both sides, then remove.
Fry fish
10:00
Gambia | Main dish
Benachin
Gambian one-pot tomato rice cooked with fish, cassava, sweet potato, cabbage, carrot, chile, and a rich seasoned broth.
Country
Gambia
Region
West Africa
Time
90 min
Serves
6
Level
medium
Recipe overview
What to know before you cook
Benachin means one pot, and the pot should taste complete before the rice goes in. Fry the fish, build a tomato broth, cook the vegetables, then let the rice absorb everything.
What the dish tastes like
Gambian one-pot tomato rice cooked with fish, cassava, sweet potato, cabbage, carrot, chile, and a rich seasoned broth.
When to cook it
Best for Family meals, with a medium cooking level and about 90 minutes total.
What to serve alongside it
Lime wedges, fresh chile sauce, cucumber salad, or tapalapa bread
Follow the collection
One-Pot Wonders is the easiest collection to explore after this dish. One-Pot Wonders
Regional lane
Gambia national table. A verified Gambia dish in the AfroKitchen archive.
Chef watch-outs
- Adding too much liquid after the rice goes in.
- Stirring too often once the grains should be steaming.
- Rushing the base before the raw edge has cooked out.
How you know it is ready
- The grains should be tender but still distinct, with steam carrying the seasoning upward.
- The aroma should smell rounded rather than raw or sharp.
- Oil, sauce, broth, or steam should look settled and deliberate.
Recipe photos
See the dish before you cook
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Chef board
Build the table around Benachin
Lime wedges, fresh chile sauce, cucumber salad, or tapalapa bread
Best route from here
Gambia national table
Collections to keep cooking
How to cook it
Step-by-step method
Keep the rhythm calm, watch the texture, and adjust seasoning at the end.
5 steps
90 min total
medium
2
Build tomato broth
In the same pot, cook onions until soft. Add garlic and tomato paste, then tomatoes, hot pepper, and water or stock.
Build broth
12:00
3
Cook vegetables
Add cassava, sweet potato, carrot, and cabbage. Simmer until just tender, then lift the vegetables out and keep warm.
Cook vegetables
15:00
4
Cook rice
Stir rice into the broth. Place fish and vegetables on top, cover tightly, and cook on low until the rice absorbs the broth.
Steam rice
30:00
5
Serve family style
Rest 10 minutes, then serve the rice on a platter with fish and vegetables arranged over it. Add lime if using.
Rest
10:00
Some cooks use fish, others use chicken or meat. Vegetables change with the market, but cassava, cabbage, carrot, and sweet potato are common companions.