So, Christmas and Jollof are red on Jollof rice, like actually. I mean, there’s no Nigerian Christmas without Jollof, party or not. But…it doesn’t have to be all about rice. You can go down the Acha/Fonio or Pasta route. If you go for rice, you could do brown too. You might want to try Bulgur – a cracked wheat grain – whatever you decide, there are many options. I’ll share the recipes soon but here are general guidelines. My big tip for Jollof? Make it ahead (minus the pasta version). My big tip: I like to prepare my Jollof Rice and...
Around The World in Bottom Pot
Smoke as a flavour is alluring, hardwired into our DNA, the DNA of homo sapiens since the discovery of fire. It’s why bottom pot is present as a desirable dish in many cultures around the world. From the discovery of fire to the preservation of food, it’s wormed its ways into our palates but for the longest time, I didn’t realise other cultures loved it like we – Nigerians – did. I’m fascinated by the things that connect cooks across borders and oceans wide – the ingredients, techniques that are the same in concept, execution and result across cultures. Bottom pot – kanzo,...
Banana ‘Bread’ French Toast
Not made with banana bread, made with a puree of ripe bananas!. I already have take 2 planned… Read all about how to make the best ever banana bread So one day, I had leftover bananas, a slight craving for banana bread but not the energy to go the whole baking hog so I pureed the bananas, flavoured with vanilla, ground cardamom and cinnamon powder and set myself on my merry way. I made a puree of the bananas – no water added, just bananas in a blender and blitzed to liquid. I combined the result, about 3/4 cup of puree with...
Nigerian Chicken Curry
My Aunt would make this when we visited them in Benin – potatoes, chicken, boiled eggs, curry powder, carrots and always green peppers. I’ve learnt well and make this often. My children LOVE it, as do I for a quick, easy and good-looking chicken-in-sauce- dish. I like to think of Sunday afternoons as the perfect time for this but evenings and any other days are fine :). The elements I generally combine half and half – half chicken and half veg but go with what works for you Vegetables A mix of vegetables add both colour, flavour and texture to...
Q & A on Longthroat Memoirs: Soups, Sex and Nigerian Taste Buds
This is about Yemisi Aribisala and her brilliant book – Longthroat Memoirs: Soups, Sex and Nigerian Taste Buds which I’ve thoroughly enjoyed reading. I’ve also had the great pleasure of asking Yemisi some questions – which she graciously answers. I first ‘met’ Yemisi in 2010, 2011 – online, in the words she penned in FOOD MATTERS on 234NEXT. Miles apart, I found kith and kin. She wrote beautifully, not just about food, but about culture and ingredients, about place and places, about discovery. Away from home, her writing comforted me in a way that only food can with its shared memory and experience....
How to: Passion Fruit Juice
Travel. Broadens the mind. Teaches you so much that you might not have known. That’s the story of my learning to make good and proper passion fruit juice, all thanks to Nairobi. Read: Favourite Drinks in Nai I’ve been a passion fruit lover since forever. It grows in Nigeria, is nutritious and delicious. At the start, unsure of what to do with the seeds, I would blend them in smoothies and purees, till I went to Nairobi in April this year. One evening, at Java House – a popular local cafe/ restaurant, I ordered, again passion fruit. The vibrant orange...
Fourteen (14) ‘Other’ Great Ideas To Use Up Brandied Fruit Mix
It’s that time of year – we’re prepping for Christmas. Well, some started earlier – whatever *rolls eyes*. I finally got round to soaking my fruit in brandy and orange liqueur for the fruitcakes that must be. This is a world record for me. I’ve soaked fruit days before, some weeks before – truth be told though, with the amazing recipe I use from BBC Good food, it hasn’t mattered much – every single make has been delicious. What I’m celebrating about this ‘early soaking’ is the feeling of being on time. Other than in Fruitcakes and Traditional English Christmas...
The Emperor’s New Jollof (Or White Rice & Stew is King)
‘Being a Nigerian is very hard. The country is in a recession. Our government makes us tired. We are always angry. We are always in traffic (well, those of us for whom Lagos is Nigeria); Amanda‘ Oh my days – I had to ask Amanda, my friend to write about her total lack of reverence for Jollof Rice. I mean, I can’t suffer this alone. This piece is the result of a conversation we had during which she said, in no uncertain words ‘ White rice & stew’ trumps has a million over Jollof’. Shock, horror, ‘Why?’, I asked intrigued by...
Red Amaranth Sauce
It’s really my peanutty red amaranth saute blitzed. Read: Peanutty red amaranth saute No more, no less. I saw a beetroot sauce on Masterchef Australia and essentially triggered this – this sauce that has the hue of beetroot and its earthiness but is a snap to prep. Sautee the Nigerian trinity – tomatoes, onions and chilies – all fresh – in vegetable oil and saltto taste. Add a handful of skinned peanuts. Throw in your red amaranth – well washed or sand grains will roll on your tongue – and that we do not want! If you like, add some peanut butter...