Pots & Pans With Hajiya Ramatu Usman Dorayi
Jollof rice is a popular party favourite in Nigeria and most West African countries. It has a basic simple method and the ingredients are easy to find.
There is an argument of which one tastes better, Nigerian or Ghana jollof? Some people have tasted both and thier conclusion is that it is a very flexible dish that you can experiment with by adding your own signature ingredients.
It all depends on the ingredients you use. Below is probably the most delicious recipe that people have ever tasted and it comes from Nigeria. Hope you have as much fun cooking as much as many people will have eating it.
INGREDIENTS
Serves 4
- 100g Long grain rice
- 3 cooking spoons Margarine /vegetable oil
- 2 large onions
- 6 or more red chilli peppers
- 3 large fresh tomatoes
- 3 tablespoons tomato purée
- 1 clove garlic/ginger
- Bay leaves
- Thyme
- 3 Maggi cubes
- 100g Chicken
- 50g boiled seasoned fish
- 40g Cooked green peas
- 2 Smoked stock fish (optional)
- 4 pieces of crabs or 50g shrimps
- A bunch of plantain bananas
- 500ml water
Method
Step 1: Melt the butter or pour 1 cooking spoon of vegetable oil in a deep cooking pan, add sliced onion till slightly brown, add grated garlic, tomato purée, sliced red chilli pepper and small grated ginger, stir all together, add other seasoning - leave to fry for 3 mins then add water.
Step 2: Add the rice and bay leaf (optional) to above.
Step 3: In another cooking pan boil the shrimps and crab fish together, add a bit of seasoning till cooked then add or separately boil green peas inside for 2 mins.
Step 4: Season the chicken and grill with onions, a bit of garlic and ginger.
Step 5: Check the rice, if almost done, or bring to boil, add the shrimps, green peas either to garnish or to add to rice depending on you.
Step 6: Melt small cooking spoon of oil into frying pan, slice a bit of onion, chopped red chilli pepper, a little tomato purée, add the fish, crab, smoke stock fish and grilled chicken. Stir, add seasoning and fry for 10 minutes to make sauce.
Step 7: Check rice if well cooked. Softly stir up from the root with a wooden spoon because of the sauce settled at the bottom. If done, garnish with cooked and boiled green peas, fried plantain and the sauce. Serve with your favourite beverage.
Tip: Grate instead of chopping the garlic and ginger into the dish in Step 1 for a sweeter unique flavour to the dish.