Kheulwa de Tabaski (Fried Mutton for Tabaski) is a traditional Senegalese recipe for a classic dish of mutton fried in mutton fat with garlic and chilli that's traditionally served for Eid-Al-Adha. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Senegalese version of: Fried Mutton for Tabaski (Kheulwa de Tabaski).
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Tabaski is the Wolof version of the Muslim Holiday Eid-Al-Adha, the second largest Muslim holiday. The Tabaski holiday commemorates Prophet Abraham’s intended sacrifice of his son Ismail, a gesture that was eventually honoured when God provided a lamb instead. So, slaughtering and sharing meat from a ram, goat, or cow for Tabaski is symbolic. This dish is usually made from the meat of that animal. This is also a way of preserving the meat in mutton fat or beef dripping so that it can be stored for later.
Ingredients:
3kg of mutton (from the tabaski or Eid sacrificial animal)
300g mutton fat
2 tsp of salt
Optional Flavouring Ingredients:
1 tsp freshly-ground black pepper
5 garlic cloves, minced
1 green chilli, minced
Method:
Begin by rendering the mutton fat. Set the fat in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring for several minutes, until the fat melts. Pour the rendered fat into glass storage jars, secure with a lid and store for use later.
When ready to cook, wash the meat thoroughly, massaging with your hands to rinse. Pat the meat dry with kitchen paper then cut into small pieces. Season the meat with salt then place in a bowl.
If you want more flavour to the meat mix in the garlic, green chilli and the ground black pepper. Rub this mixture into the meat then cover the bowl and set aside to marinate for 30 minutes.
Add the rendered mutton fat to a saucepan over medium heat. Warm until the fat has melted then add the meat pieces and any left-over marinade. Cook, stirring occasionally for about 30 minutes, until the meat is nicely browned on the outside and fully cooked through.
Remove the meat from the pan with a slotted spoon and transfer to a serving bowl. Pour the melted fat from the pan over the meat and serve.
You can also pack the meat into jars, then pour over enough melted rendered fat to completely cover the meat. Secure a lid on the jar and allow to cool. This way the meat will last for about 10–15 days.
To use, lift the meat out of the jar with a clean spoon (do not use your fingers or touch the contents of the jar or it may spoil). This way you can use just what you need and preserve the remainder.
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