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Fish and seafood from Senegal

Yeetyeet

Yeet is the flesh of a large sea snail, taken from the shell, freed of its guts and split, then left to ferment in tanks or sacks for two to four days. It is washed and dried on raised platforms for another two to four days. The semi-dry, light brown product has a strong smell and keeps about two months.

Fully documentedFish and seafood4 days – 8 days

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedAn artisanal method with no fixed amounts. FAO's process text for yeet names no salt, though its table lists the Senegal group as fermented with salting; a 2005 Senegalese survey says the sliced flesh ferments in brine for 48 hours, and gives no brine strength or ratio.
Sea snail flesh, removed from the shell and freed of the guts[fao1992]
Brine, the liquid the flesh ferments in at Senegalese sites in the 2005 survey (no strength or ratio is given)[mbaye2005]

Total time across the recorded steps: 4 days – 8 days

Start
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What changes: The snail flesh is taken from the shell, freed of guts and split

Step 1 of 4
Take the flesh from the shell, remove the guts and split it in two or four
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactic acid bacteria
Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

At a glance

Yeet is the flesh of a large sea snail, taken from the shell, freed of its guts and split, then left to ferment in tanks or sacks for two to four days. It is washed and dried on raised platforms for another two to four days. The semi-dry, light brown product has a strong smell and keeps about two months. Made in 4 steps over 4 days – 8 days. The longest step, ferment in tanks, jute bags or polysacks, takes 2–4 days (Essuman K.M. 1992). No study names the microbes of yeet alone; in guedj, the sister Senegalese ferment, lactic acid bacteria reach about 6 log10 CFU/g does most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step2–4 daysReported[fao1992]Ferment in tanks, jute bags or polysacks

What makes this one different

Yeet is a shellfish, not a fish. FAO's process text for yeet names no salt, only fermentation in tanks or sacks and drying on raised platforms, though its table lists the Senegal group as fermented with salting; a 2005 Senegalese survey says the flesh ferments in brine for 48 hours.

Related ferments

Safety

FAO notes that yeet is susceptible to heavy mould growth and keeps about two months. Contamination risks at Senegalese sites include washing in polluted water and handling on the ground; raised drying racks are widely used in Senegal.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

FAO's early-1990s survey listed yeet with guedj and tambadiang as the Senegalese fermented products, processed mostly by women.

Starter
The sources we found do not say how its fermentation begins.
Temperature, salt and pH
The sources we found give no temperature, salt or pH figure for any of its steps.
  1. [mbaye2005] Mbaye L. 2005, Etat des lieux de la filière de transformation artisanale des produits halieutiques au Sénégal (master thesis for the Info Conseil MPEA / PAOA project, Dakar), section on dried fermented products (tambadiang, guedj, yeet)paper
  2. [fao1992] Essuman K.M. 1992, Fermented fish in Africa. A study on processing, marketing and consumption, FAO Fisheries Technical Paper 329, Rome, chapter 3 (Fish processing characteristics) and chapter 4gov
  3. [fall2019] Fall M., Diop M.B., Montet D., Maiga A.S., Guiro A.T. 2019, Fermentation du poisson en Afrique de l'Ouest et défis sociétaux pour une amélioration qualitative des produits (adjuevan, guedj et lanhouin), revue de la littérature, Cahiers Agricultures 28:7, doi 10.1051/cagri/2019007paper
  4. [khongthaw2026] Khongthaw B., Dladla M., Chauhan P.K., Dulta K. et al. 2026, Fermented fish products. A comprehensive overview of traditional processing techniques, varieties, and their health benefits, Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety 25, doi 10.1111/1541-4337.70457 (review table, citing Akande 2013)paper