Now that mangoes are in season properly, we’re enjoying them in all sorts of ways, one of which is in sauces. This version features fresh mango flesh, tamarind ‘water’, cilantro – my favourite ever herb and mazarkwaila, sugar cane sugar! Now sugar cane is one of my favourite things ever and I’d never come across it...
‘Kilishi’ is a northern Nigerian nut-seasoned sun-dried meat snack similar to beef jerky. It generally refers to beef, sheep or goat meat processed by dressing, slicing, sun drying, application of some slurry of spices and roasting over coals/ fire. Birthplace Kano city it seems but of course also found in other northern states and places. History...
What you do when you ferry leftovers across skies, from Abuja to Lagos – you make Jollof. You add some yaji and kulikuli to the mix. You also treat the Balangu three ways: You attempt to make a floss of it, dambu – attempt she says because laziness and smoke and we did have small chunks...
The North of Nigeria has a long tradition of excellence in meat preparation and handling from Tsire to Dambu, Kilishi to Balangu, these specialty meats delight palates the world over particularly in Nigeria. My reading and research suggests that Suya is the umbrella name for many meat products from the north of Nigeria though in...
My fascination for the Northern Nigerian Kitchen – The Arewa Kitchen is growing more and more and more. This week, I’d love to share snippets of what I’ve learnt about the cuisine. I will share drinks, meats and more but first up, breads! I love the ‘breads’ and pancakes. My first introduction was Masa, then...
Because sometimes, in spite of your best intentions, things will fail spectacularly. All that’s important then is what you learn and what you decide to do with it. The idea for a goat confit came after a discussion with a friend, B. I don’t remember the exacts but I know I was at a store...
I loved learning how to make Fura and couldn’t wait to combine it with white chocolate and bananas. Nono is made from fresh milk soured with a bit of curdled milk, similar to using yogurt as a starter in a fresh batch. Fermentation happens over a day or two; Fura is made from millet, cooked...
Making Dambu has been on my list of things to learn for ages. This weekend past, my Hausa teacher – yes, Hausa teacher (I’m learning to speak Hausa because I think it is delightful. It sounds incredibly beautiful – soft and melodic) taught me. In Hausa, Dambu literally translated is ‘mixture’. And this, is a mixture...
I grew up eating yam and pepper soup, or plantain and pepper soup. That was and is one of my mom’s favourite meals ever. Well, that and my peanut butter chicken sauce with Chinese fried rice or noodles. Then in 2001, I went to Youth Service camp in Bayelsa. One afternoon, my friend took me...