Guest Blog – featuring Dave!

(Ed note: You know him as my lovable cohort in my Burkina travails – now hear his words! Dave has graciously written the following missive to entice your tastebuds and tickle your palate. Enjoy!)

As Margaret described earlier, we celebrated the Muslim holiday of Tabaski with our host family in Ouahigouya. It was a festive day of eating and causerie (conversation). While we avoided the sacrificing of the sheep, I did participate in the preparation of the sheep’s head which is later made into a stew and served for breakfast the morning after the holiday. In case you want to try it out, here is an easy-to-follow recipe:

Tabaski Sheep’s Head Stew

Ingredients:
One Whole Sheep Head (Male)
Water
Onions
Tomatoes
Salt

Preparation:
1)Start a small fire and rest the entire sheep head above the fire on a metal grate. The object here is to remove all of the hair/fur remaining on the head. Continue rotating the head, to ensure even cooking. You can do this by using the horns which do not get too hot to touch.
2)As you get closer to the skin, the hair becomes tougher. Scrape this hair right off with the nearest knife while continuing to rotate. The goal is to achieve a smooth feel to the skin. The whole process will take about 30-40 minutes so grab a stool if you are not used to squatting by a fire.
3)Now you are ready to remove the inedible portions of the head. First, bend back the lower jaw at a 90 degree angle. Make an incision behind the back molars and cut off the lower jaw and tongue. Discard.
4)Cut out the top row of teeth by slicing forward from the back molars. This is a bit tougher than the bottom row so pry if necessary.
5)Next, remove the outer shell/encasing of the horns. You can do this by cracking the horns between two rocks and peeling it off like the shell of a hard-boiled egg (although in far fewer pieces).
6)Return the entire head to the fire for a few more minutes of roasting. With the jaw out of the way, you can really get at cooking the inner snout meat.
7)The head is now ready for stewing. Cut up the head to extract the meat you would like (all of it). Choice cuts are under the eye sockets and along the back of the head. Put the meat in a pot of boiling water. The natural juices will form a nice broth and you can add tomatoes, onions, and salt for additional flavor.
8)Wait until morning.
9)Serve with a baguette for dipping.
10)Enjoy and Happy Tabaski!

The blog’s editor has censored a photo of this cooking process. An example photo of a roasting sheep head can be found here.