Thieboudienne (also rendered ceebu jën, thiebou dieune, or riz au poisson) is a traditional Senegalese dish composed primarily of fish, broken rice, and vegetables simmered together in a tomato-based sauce. It is considered the national dish of Senegal and holds cultural significance across the broader Senegambian region, with variations also found in Mauritania, The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, and other West African countries.
The dish’s name derives from the Wolof words ceeb (rice) and jën (fish). The preparation typically involves marinated or stuffed white fish — traditionally species like grouper — combined with broken jasmine rice and vegetables such as carrots, cabbage, eggplant, cassava, and bell peppers. The ingredients are cooked together in a single pot, often using tomato paste, garlic, onions, hot peppers, lime, and peanut oil. Regional variations may incorporate additional flavorings such as bissap (hibiscus leaves) or yete (a fermented seafood condiment).
Thieboudienne is closely linked to the city of Saint-Louis, Senegal, and is often attributed to a 19th-century cook named Penda Mbaye, who reportedly popularized the dish using broken rice introduced by French colonial trade networks. This rice, imported in large quantities from Asia and considered inferior due to breakage, became a staple due to its affordability and compatibility with local cooking techniques.
The dish is traditionally consumed communally, with diners gathered around a single platter, eating by hand or with spoons. Thieboudienne is emblematic of teranga, the Senegalese cultural value of hospitality.
Historically, thieboudienne is regarded as the culinary precursor to West African jollof rice, a pan-regional dish that evolved to favor meat rather than fish and incorporates the rice directly into the stew rather than layering it. Thieboudienne also bears resemblance to Gullah red rice, a dish found in the southeastern United States among descendants of enslaved West Africans, reflecting the transatlantic continuity of rice-based food traditions.
Numerous linguistic variations exist for the name of the dish, reflecting both the region’s multilingual context and the diffusion of the dish across different ethnic and national boundaries.