This piece – which I absolutely love – is by Fara who has a long relationship with my Beloved – Jollof. Girl meets Jollof is her story, and I’m reminded about how food shapes us, comforts us, uplifts and nourishes us. Read and enjoy xxx Before there were Jollof Wars and way before there was...
I am distraught to see Jollof spelled with j. So I’ve decided to tell you people how to write about Jollof. Jollof Rice. I am also ready to campaign for a bill, a law, to dictate these things. Don’t push me. Capital J First of all, write about it with the respect it deserves. Spell...
Jollof rice – ever present. Wedding, funeral, homecoming, celebration, birth, death, life. I’m not sure what other dish has this power or magic in West Africa. Literature often mimics life so that the instances that show up on the page are likely to have happened. I’ve began to look out for food – particularly Jollof...
I’m a huge fan of Jollof Rice…but you know that already. I’m an even bigger fan of celebrating Nigerian cuisine and that underscored the theme of last year’s World Jollof Rice Day celebration. I organised – with Maggi as the key sponsor – a Jollof in the Arts event. The idea was to explore Jollof...
There is a certain depth of documentation that comes with Independence, allows records be collected and preserved for posterity. This Independence week, I’m showing ‘liberty’ and freedom in food :). I’ve always found cookbooks fascinating. I’m the sort of person whose bedtime reading is ingredient lists and recipe directions – a veritable feast as I...
There are one hundred mentions of Yam – one hundred. 100. C (Roman Numerals) in Things Fall Apart (1958) – the most widely read book in modern African literature. Written by renowned writer, the late Chinua Achebe, the novel is set in late 19th century Nigeria, pre colonisation. It follows the life of Okonkwo, a wrestling champion on a journey that...