Stay with a Family in Gambia for Cooking Experience Day

From Benachin rice to Wonjo juice

The City of Banjul is the destination for your Cooking Experience in Gambia, this is the capital city and renewed for it's delicious cuisine. To experience the real Gambian way of life, the best way to do it’s through food. With trademark dishes from Benachin rice to Yassa and trademark drinks from Boabab to Wonjo juice you are going to get captivated by the vastness of Gambian cuisine. 

With your Stay with a Family in Gambia experience you will start the day by being collected by your tour guide from your Banjul hotel. You will then be getting dressed in traditional Gambian attire, this will help you feel at home. By Landrover you will then head down to the local market, on the way you will be able to converse with your family and decide which items you can shop for food to later create amazing Gambian meals from. Usually on route to the market you will collect blocks of ice to use for cooling your drinks.

Upon arriving to the market, you will then be involved in the amazing organised chaos of a Gambian shop! The market is a fascinating place and you will wander through the market for about an hour or so purchasing fresh ingredients for your meals. Ingredients typically include rice, vegetables, fish, meat, and of course spice. Your next port of call with your Stay with a Family in Gambia is their home, this is when your cooking experience in Gambia really begins. First a fire is created under what looks to be a caldron, whilst the fire gets established, you will then prepare the meat or fish along with the vegetables. Then you will crush the spices and create the seasoning for your meal. The actual preparation and cooking in total usually takes about 3 hours so don't get any ideas that this cooking experience in Gambia is a walk in the park. 

Finally, once your meal has been cooked you will be able to sit down and enjoy your Stay with a Family in Gambia by indulging in the food! When eating a family cooked meal in Gambia, you do so by sitting on the floor with crossed legs and you will eat with your hands (don't panic, your family to teach you how to do this, and if you do really want, cutlery can be provided). Baobab and Wonjo juice is shared around to wash it all down. You will then clean up with the family and then it's time to say goodbye and end your Stay with a Family in Gambia.