MORE EVENTSMuseum Store
Featuring many one-of-a-kind crafts, household and decorative objects. Items found in our store are produced exclusively for the Museum by artisans and craftspeople and imported directly from Africa.
Your purchase at our store supports local African artisans and museum programs.
Kedjenou Pot
Kedjenou Chicken Recipe
1 chicken cut into small pieces which fit into opening of pot
2 sliced or chopped onions
Several garlic cloves chopped Chopped fresh ginger (optional)
2 or 3 chopped fresh or canned tomatoes
1 eggplant cut into small pieces
Hot pepper to taste whole or chopped. ( Chopped will make dish much hotter.)
Salt to taste
not traditional, but a small amount of white wine can be added as well as a bouillon cube and chopped parsley or herbs.
Put tomatoes into pot first, then add other ingredients. Close tightly with aluminum foil or banana leaf. Cook directly on burner over medium heat for approximately one hour our until chicken completely cooked.
Shake vigorously every ten minutes to prevent sticking. (Kedjenou means to shake in Baule.)
Bring to table and pour into Baule bowl for attractive presentation.
Please use caution when handling hot pottery. The Museum for African Art makes no claim or representation about the safety of placing Baule pottery purchased at the Museum directly on to the fire.
H: 9.5" Diameter: 9.75"
Baule pottery was traditionally made by women for practical uses-carrying water, cooking, serving and eating, as well as for ritual purposes. Skills are traditionally passed down from mother to daughter. Clay, dug from the banks of streams, is pounded and strained of impurities, then shaped using the "coil" technique. Pottery is fired on open flames and blackened by placing it on smoldering sawdust and then brushing it with a liquid made of leaves and tree bark, giving it a shiny and somewhat waterproof surface.
Because it is fired at low heat, Baule pottery can be placed directly on the burner of a gas or electric stove and used for cooking. When brought to the table for serving, it makes a highly decorative effect. Our collection includes traditional items like cooking pots and also other forms like the ram vase, which are creations of individual artists.
The Museum's pottery is made by a women's cooperative in the village of Tanoh Sakassou. Proceeds from the sales go directly to the makers and are the main source of income for village women who traditionally pay school fees and health costs for their children and support their own parents. During the past ten years of civil unrest in the Ivory Coast, this income has been essential.
