2021 JPF grant recipient New England Culinary Arts Training (NECAT), offers a Re-Entry Culinary Job Training Program for incarcerated individuals just prior to their release, helping set those individuals up for a smoother, more stable re-entry into the community. Like all NECAT training programs, the Re-Entry Program provides the technical, professional, and life skills necessary to secure career-ladder jobs in the culinary industry.
Ingredients
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons red palm oil or olive oil
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- ¼ cup finely chopped red onion
- ¼ cup finely chopped bell pepper
- ¼ cup finely chopped tomato
- 1 tablespoon yaji or other dry seasoning mix like curry powder
- Pinch baking soda
- 2 cups fine-grind cornmeal or maseca flour, toasted
- Salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
Method
- Bring the chicken broth to a simmer on the stovetop in a medium saucepan.
- Heat 2 tablespoons the palm oil in a medium sauté pan over medium heat. Stir in the tomato paste and cook until warm, about a minute. Add the onion, bell pepper, and tomato, followed by the yaji and the baking soda. Continue stirring and cooking until the vegetables are tender, about 3 minutes. Stir a generous spoonful of the tomato mixture into the broth and reserve/keep warm the rest for serving.
- Gradually stir the cornmeal into the simmering chicken broth and cook until the liquid has absorbed and the cornmeal is tender, about 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- The djenkome can be formed into a mound or spooned onto a plate with the reserved tomato sauce for serving. I like to spoon the djenkome into a ramekin and invert onto a plate on top of the sauce to serve alone or with fish, chicken or pork.
To toast the cornmeal or maseca flour, pour into a dry cast iron skillet and heat over medium-low to medium heat, stirring often until fragrant and a light golden brown. Lower the heat as needed to keep from burning.
Yaji seasoning is a dry spice blend, typically of onion powder, garlic powder, ground ginger and cayenne pepper. It is a staple of West African cooking and used in many dishes, but especially goes well with meats, vegetables, and rice. You can find yaji at yajispice.com, an online store for West African spices and often sourced directly from farms supporting women.
While I was still in West Africa, my mother and I read Jacques Pépin’s autobiography The Apprentice. It’s what inspired me to become a chef! I learned how to cook from my mother and later cooking became how I mourned her. This djenkoume is a traditional side dish that we made in Togo, where I am from. Toasting the cornmeal first adds a fragrant, nutty flavor.