On Turning 55 & 55 Things To Celebrate About Nigerian Cuisine

In honour of our 55th year as an independent nation (for all intents and purposes) on the first of October, here are 55 things you should know about Nigerian cuisine, 55 things I’m celebrating.

What is it like?

1. How to describe it? An interesting melange that’s vibrant and  flavourful with rich stews, sauces, fresh fruits and vegetables
2. Often mistaken for being ‘pepper hot’ when ‘spicy’ is right, because our food has more dimensions than one ‘pepper’ note
3. The essentials are often fresh – tomatoes, onions, chilies, greens
4. A variety of intriguing herbs and spices make for a rich pantry and flavourful food
5. It is twinned with Brazil through the slave trade – Acaraje, Farofa, Imoyo, Frejon (dishes that show the transfer of culture & cuisine)
6. It has similar elements to SE Asian cuisines like Thai and Vietnamese – use of fermented fish (Nigerian crayfish, Thai fish sauce, shrimp paste) for umami, fresh coconut, herbs, light broths and more

Facts, Figures & More

7. Our cuisine is regional though with common elements of (leafy) stews and starches. Each region has characteristic dishes, with staples in the south made from maize/corn, yams, cassava/manioc or plantains. In the north, rice, millet and sorghum are very common.
8. Nigerian Jollof is King.  Not Ghanaian or Senegalese or any other. Thank you.
9. We are the only African country to have pyramids besides Egypt. Of groundnuts.
10. We are first on the list of yam producers
11. We are one of the leading producers of (sometimes seen as dangerous) Tonka beans, with Venezuela
12. Fresh, fresh, fresh – we eat a lot of fresh produce, in season too
13. New discoveries are being made in the Nigerian kitchen. For instance, you can do more than ‘lick’ Agbalumo; make Akara without slaving to peel the beans and pound yam in a food processor. Makes for creative and efficient cooks, me thinks
14. And you can do more with garri than soak or cook it. Like crust, like pan fry, like crumble topping

In Season

15. January – Carrots, Agbalumo, Sugar cane
16. February – Mangoes
17. March – Pepper fruit, Velvet Tamarind, Guava
18. April – Black Walnut
19. May – Local strawberries
20. June – Corn, Ube, Shadock, Sea almonds
21. July- Groundnuts, Soursop
22. August – Yams, new yams,Cocoa, Money Kola
23. September – Garden eggs, Custard Apples
24. October – Watermelons, Oranges
25. November – Garden eggs
26. December – Ube Okpoko, June Plums, Jos Tomatoes

Food festivals/ Festivals with food

27. New Yam festival, with Ofe Nsala
28. Ramadan
29. Argungu Fishing Festival

Regional specialties

30. Ukodo, from the people of the Niger Delta, a sweet pottage of yam and meats in a flavourful broth
31. Banga soup – best served in a clay pot. With love.
32. Ofada rice – a fermented, sweet and flavourful rice from, yes, Ofada
33. Worowo, a soft leafy green from the west of Nigeria, great with pounded yam
34. Fried yam at Saminaka, in the north, a junction town that serves up delightful chicken
35. Edikan Ikong, a leafy green stew from the South-South
36. Tuwon, rice balls served with soups and stews from the Nigerian north
37. Masa, a sweet rice cake from the north

Definitive Dishes

38. Jollof rice
39. Nigerian fried rice
40. Pepper soup
41. Egusi soup. Yes, yes, yes

Must-try Nigerian drinks

41. Chapman, a refreshing blend of soft drinks and blackcurrant cordial. Can be revved up too with a dash of alcohol
42. Zobo, an infusion made from the dried flowers of a variety of Hibsicus. Also known as red sorrel
43. The family Kunnu
44. Fura de nono
45. ‘Green Sands’ Shandy….ok, ok, a riff on the combo of soda and lager

New takes on the ‘Old’ – Herbs & Spices

46. Scent leaves with sugar & spice, in cocktails…; Snails in many ways
47. Grains of selim for more than pepper soup – great in tomato stews
48. Bitter leaf in drinks

Snacks

49. Puff-puff
50. Chin chin
51. Meat pies

Streetfood

52. Akara
53. Suya
54. Bole & Fish, groundnuts,
55. Roasted Corn

So there – 55 things you should know about Nigerian cuisine, in celebration of our Independence.

What else would you add to the list?