The sun slowly begins to set over the island of Ngor, off the northern coast of Senegal’s capital, Dakar.  As residents and tourists lounge on the beach, the smell of frying fish wafts from a nearby restaurant, mingling with the salty air. Inside, Aminata Mbengue slices onions with quick, confident movements. On tonight’s menu is thieboudienne, Senegal’s national dish. It’s made from fish, rice, cabbage, carrots, cassava, eggplant, oil, and chile, all of it stewed in a rich, tomato-based broth. Traditionally eaten with one’s hands from a communal plate, thieb is seen as a culinary reflection of one of Senegal’s core cultural values, teranga, or hospitality. Why We Wrote This The cost of food is rising quickly in Senegal. Nowhere is this more evident than the price of the country’s national dish, thieboudienne. The dish is so iconically Senegalese that, in 2021, UNESCO added it to the list of the world’s most important pieces of “intangible cultural heritage.” But nearly all of the ingredients Ms.…