One thing you should know is that there are ‘unspoken rules’ for cuts depending on what you’re having, in Nigerian cuisine. So I did you the good deed of sharing them. Because in the coming days, you’ll read all about plantain and love for it and how and what not. This is to equip you....
One day, at lunch, I found perfect plantain. It sent me on an upward spiral (?) – it just made me think so many thoughts. And then I asked other people what they thought of my idea of perfect – not that I needed their validation because nothing will make me call overripe mush dodo...
I’ve almost always used the dried version and so haven’t had the opportunity, till recently to truly get a whiff of the buttery, caramel, chocolate notes the aidan pod has trapped within it. A winged pod, with 2 hard, inedible and 2 soft, edible wings, it is a core ingredient in my mother’s pepper soup....
Updated, May 29th with a table, also confirming the name! For years, I’ve called it banga stick or oburunbebe, as learned from the interwebs. All attempts to find the botanical name drawing blanks. But researchers stay researching – once one, always and forever one. Some skills to being a good researcher are: Observation: when you...
From market to web page, it seems – despite their size and appearance differences – that umilo and gbafilo might be related, after all. Proof that sameness is beyond appearance. In my search for the botanical name for umilo, I happened upon an article referring to umilo by Parinari excelsa, the botanical name which I ‘knew’...
Updated – 30th May, 2019 – Name found – its the cocoa plum (amongst other names) …still searching. And still, when in doubt, observe. When you don’t know the what or why or how, focus on what you can see, hear, smell, touch, feel, taste, focus on observing. I know one name of this peppersoup...
Updated 29th May 2019, with the botanical names for Omilo/ Umilo I am an explorer. The thrill of discovery is blood to my bones such that rifling – if you can call electronically paging through pdfs that – through documents about the organoplectic nature of xyz are adventure hunts for me. One of the things...
It deserves ALL the accolades. It includes my thoughts and voxpop, real views from real people on the Nigerian street. For bringing us to the table and kitchen, giving West African countries something to fight about 🙂 and something to unite over cc: #Jollofgate What do you think?
Jollof Wars. A compound phrase made up of two words: Jollof of a red, spiced rice dish loved in every city and town ‘South of the Sahara’ and along the coast of West Africa. Synonyms: Djolof, Benachim (Gambia); Thiéboudienne (Senegal) Wars a state of competition or hostility between different people or groups. “she was at war with her parents” Characteristics The...