# Thiere

Thiere or tyere (Senegalse-French spelling) or chere / chereh (Gambian-English spelling), from Wolof cere, itself from the Serer name Ceereer ne (the Serer people); or saadj in Serer or Saay in Serer Saafi and Cangin, is a millet based Senegalese and Gambian couscous.
The Serer people, renowned for their expertise in farming and fishing, are well renowned in the Gambia and Senegal as the inventors, and it is their favourite dish.
The Serer control and dominate the entire phase of this dish from farming the sorghum millet, harvesting, preparation, and cooking, as well as selling it at the market.
Other ethnic groups (as well as Serers), usually buy it from Serer women market traders or contract it out to them especially if they are holding major ceremonial events. Chere is very versatile and can be eaten with fermented milk or cream and sugar as a breakfast cereal or prepared just as a standard couscous. Although it can be eaten as a breakfast or at lunch, it is usually eaten at night. After the Serer women have performed the physically demanding pounding of the millet by hand using a large traditional pestle and mortar, they will add baobab leaf (lalo) to it to give it a nice and smooth texture and enhance the taste. It can be eaten with base - which is a form of peanut butter stew (of groundnut paste), and can be eaten with meat, fish, or vegetables.

## Etymology

The Wolof term cere and its variations derives from the Serer term Ceereer ne (Serer people) - and it is pronounced exactly as that in Serer with longer vowels, alluding to the creators. The Serer people do not refer to the dish by the name they call themselves. That is a Wolof phenomenon as the dish was primary made by the Serer who also dominated the sale of the dish in markets, even today. The real name of this dish is saadj (in Serer, with dialect variations by other Serer groups e.g. saac amongst the Serer Niominka) or saay amongst the Serer-Saafi (and other Serer Cangin peoples).

## History

Historically, saadj/thiere was produced by the Serer in the pre-colonial Serer Kingdoms of Sine and Saloum as part of their normal dishes. The dish was also prepared on Serer religious ceremonial occasions such as the Gamo, Raan, and Xooy festivals, as well as during weddings, naming ceremonies, etc. Amongst the Serers' ancestors, the dish could be eaten in the morning as a breakfast cereal with fermented milk and honey or during the day or night as lunch or dinner served with vegetables, meat, or fish. It all depended on what they had available. With the advent of trade and globalisation - where more produce is easily available, the recipes used regardless of the time of the day has become richer and varied.
Amongst the Wolof (and other ethnic groups) who converted to Islam in mass in the 19th century, it is customary to consume it in the evenings as a dinner, weddings, or on special Islamic religious occasions such as Tamkharit (the Muslim new year Ashura), in Wolof. Muslim communities in the Senegambia region (Senegal and Gambia) also prepare it for the Muslim Gamo festival (not to be confused with the ancient Serer religious Gamo festival).

## Preparation

It is usually served with different variations of sauces such as bassi salté, bassi guerte or mboum. The sauce often includes vegetables, meat or chicken, moringa leaves.