Chadian Breakfast Bouille (Rice and Peanut Porridge)

Welcome to February on Gormandize with A-dizzle and K-bobo! We're pretty excited about all the incredible and fascinating foods we'll be offering up for you to devour with your eyes and it's certainly going to be a journey into the unknown for us because this month we are exploring the cuisine of Chad. Thanks to our reader, Sophie, for requesting Chad as our feature country this month. Firstly - it must be said that neither of us have been to Chad (yet!) nor do we know anybody from Chad with whom we could consult on these, so any comments on authenticity would be welcomed! If you have been to Chad or have a knowledge of Chadian cuisine we'd be over the moon if you contacted us!

First, a bit about Chad for those who aren't very familiar with it. Chad is a landlocked country in Northern Central Africa. It borders Libya, Niger, Nigeria, Cameroon, Central African Republic and Sudan.

(Map from worldatlas.com)

(Map from lonelyplanet.com)

Chad has a chiefly dessert climate and is one of the poorest countries in the world. For these reasons the Chadian diet consists mainly of grains, beans, vegetables and meat. Often dried vegetables are used with grains as the staple foods for Chadians. Millet, rice and sorghum are commonly consumed grains, whilst okra, cassava and peanuts are often used to flavour and thicken dishes.

To start Chad month off I've made a breakfast dish called la bouille - a rice porridge flavoured with peanuts. I found a base for this recipe on this website, however, this exact same recipe is on a dozen sites over the internet and none of them credit a source so I can't be sure where it actually came from. My version is veganised and slightly altered to my personal tastes. Even so, I found it very nice but a touch bland. I'm guessing this might speak to it's authenticity, but it would be even nicer used as a base to which you can add anything you like. I ate mine with fresh banana and a sprinkle of brown sugar and it was quite a delicious breakfast and a very healthy way to start the day.

Ingredients
1 cup rice
4 cups hot water
3 tbsp millet flour (you can substitute other flours)
1/2 cup soy milk
3 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup peanuts (no skins, unsalted)

To Make
1. Bring the water to boil and add the rice. Lower the heat to a simmer.
2. Finely chop the peanuts while the rice is simmering and set aside.
3. Mix the millet flour with 3/4 cup warm water until dissolved completely. Add this mixture to the simmering rice.
4. Once the rice is cooked and the porridge has thickened, add the soy milk, lemon juice and salt.
5. Remove from the heat and stir through the chopped peanuts.

Garnish with any toppings you choose - I suggest fresh fruit, tinned fruit in syrup, chopped nuts and/or brown sugar.

Serves 3-4.

Check out our other Chadian recipes as well: 

Millet Balls with 3 dipping sauces

Chadian Sweet Potato Fritters

Chadian Irio (Mashed beans, potatoes and vegetables)
African Loz (Almond and Pistachio Bites of Amazingness)
Kachumbari 
Maharagwe