Porridge with Nigerian twist

Yam Porridge

Yam is one of the dishes that can be easily prepared.

 

Yam is cultivated throughout the West African region and Caribbean. It can be used to make a simple meal yet a tasty meal.  It is firmer and denser; when properly cooked it is richer in taste than potato.  

Yam comes in three main varieties:

a) A yellow yam with a sweet taste it can be roasted and eatten with fresh palm oil and salt.

b) Water yam, (Ewura) is very soft; it can be used for various dishes like Ojojo (Akara yam), Ebiripo, Ikokore and so on.

c) The third one is the standard one, very popular and more abundant.

For our recipe today, we will use the standard whole yam. This recipe can feed 6 Adults.

Ingredients:

• 1 kg African Standard Yam
• 2 cooking spoonful Palm oil
• 20g Smoked fish
• 10g Cray fish
• 20g Onion
• 3g Fresh Hot Pepper
• 1 tablespoonful Granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoonful Black Pepper
• 10g Fresh Tomatoes
• Salt
• 2litres Water
• 2 Cubes Maggi

 Method:

• Slice the yam (as it is) into circle shapes around 3 inch
• Peel and cut into chunks then wash the yam properly and put it in a large pot
• Peel the onion and blend it with crayfish together in a coarse paste
• Wash the pepper and the tomatoes and blend into fine paste.
• Break up the smoked fish and wash in hot boiled water to remove the debris.
• Place the pot with the yam on the cooker; turn the cooker to high heat.
• Add 1½litres of water, 1 teaspoonful of Black pepper, 2 large wooden spoon  of palm oil and then 1 teaspoonful of salt to taste (1 teaspoonful) – then cover and cook to boil.
• As soon as the water starts boiling, stir it and add the onion and crayfish paste and the chunks of smoked fish and cover.
• After 5 -10 mins, add pepper and tomato paste and 2 cubes of Maggi seasoning cubes and cover to cook for 10mins
• By now, the porridge should be thickened, so reduce the heat by half and add the granulated sugar and stir together with wooden spoon (Optional). Stir and cover for 2-3 mins, then let it cool down and serve your delicious meal.

 Combine your yam porridge with fried fish, steamed fish, stick meat, chicken stew etc.

 

Happy Cooking :)

Mix and Match Dish with Fried Tilapia

COMMON FISH, FIT FOR A KING
 

Just so excited that I will share with you another dish that you can mix and match with the other dishes I've taught you.  You can eat the fish on it own, or with Dodo, Jollof or fried rice, yam pottage and so many other dishes.

We have millions of fishes in the water, but our special one this time will be “TILAPIA FISH.

This fish can be prepared in so many ways, but we will talk about frying Tilapia. Let’s get started...

 

Ingredients:

• 2 Whole fresh tilapia fish
• 1 litre Vegetable Oil
• Salt                      
• 2 tablespoonful fish seasoning
• 1 medium onion
• 1 Red bell pepper
• 1 Green bell pepper
• 1 Yellow bell pepper
• 2 Cubes of fish Stock

 Method:

• After Cleaning the fish thoroughly and making sure there are no scales attached to them, choose to prepare them either cut into pieces or whole (Optional)
• Get a bowl and mix the seasoning; fish seasoning, and 1 cube of fish stock.
• Rub the fish with the seasoning and leave it for 20mins to absorb the seasoning.
• Put the fry pan on the cooker and pour oil in it (enough to shallow fry) and wait for it to heart up.
• When the oil is hot, carefully, put the fish in the oil to fry
• Let the fish dry on one side and turn it around until it’s golden brown, and then remove from the oil and drain it
• Slice the Onion and the bell pepper in circular shape. Put a little bit of oil in a sauce pan
• When it’s hot, pour the slice pepper and onion in the oil and fry for 5 mins.
• Serve the fish in an oval fish plate and garnish with the fried onion and pepper.

Happy Cooking :)

In a Hurry Meal, Dodo

Dodo (Fried Plantain)

In hurry to get to work? No worries, here's a quick and easy meal to prepare. You only need 15 minutes to prepare this meal.  Amongst Nigerian and most African descendent countries, it is better known as Dodo, but its common name is fried plantain.

 

Ingredients:

• Ripe plantain
• 1 litre Vegetable Oil
• Salt

Method:

• Put a frying pan on the cooker and pour in 50ml oil (or just enough to shallow fry) or you can use a deep frying machine to fry it.
• Peel the Plantain and cut into oval shape as you can see in the picture
• Sprinkle the salt as required on the plantain, mixed together to absorb it.
• When the oil is hot, carefully, pour the plantain in the hot oil, and fry deep
• Check it regularly and change the sides.
• When it is golden brown, use a fork to pick it out of the oil onto a clean plate.
• Serve with stew or  fried egg or anything of our choice e.g. Jollof rice, stick meat, fried fish, fish stew, egusi soup, beans, chicken stew etc.

    Happy Cooking :)

Egusi Soup, the Life of the Party

In the southern areas of Nigeria, Egusi soup is a ‘MUST’ for party throwers because you can eat it with a lot of dishes.

 

Ingredients:

• 8oz of fresh beef Chunks
• 500g Bush meat
• 500g Stockfish pre-soaked
• 500g Smoked dry fish
• 8oz Palm oil
• 250g  Cleaned Stripe
• 8oz Smoked Awo Chicken
• 20g Grounded Sawa
• 300g Ground Egusi
• 1 Large Onion
• 200g Fresh Pepper
• 500g Tomatoes
• 500g Vegetable (Fresh Bitter leaf-washed to remove excessive bitterness)
• Salt
• 2litres Water
• 4 Cubes Beef   Stock
• 1 tablespoon - Iru (Locust Beans)
• 2 tablespoonful - All Purposed Seasoning
• 2 Cloves - Garlic

 Method:

• Wash the beef, bush meat, stripe, thoroughly
• Place a pot on the cooker and put the meat in it, and season it by: adding sliced onion, salt to taste, garlic, all purpose seasoning, and 1 litre of water, and then cover to cook until tender.
• Wash the dry fish, awo chicken, and stockfish, and washed dry fish and cook for 10 minutes. Add 3 cubes of beef stock
• Ground the pepper, tomatoes and the onion together and pour into a clean bowl.
• Wash the pot and put it back on the cooker, let it dry up and pour the palm oil in it when it’s hot
• Add the grounded pepper, tomatoes and onion and let them cook for 10minutes.
• Mix the grounded egusi with a bit of the grounded sawa and a  pinch of salt. Kneed it properly like dough, cut it bit by bit into the cooking pepper.
• Add Iru (locust beans) stirring thoroughly and cook for 5mins
• Finally, add all the cooked meat and add ½ litre of water. Add the washed vegetable (optional) bitter leaf, tete, soko   spinach etc.
• Add the rest of the grounded sawa, and allow it to cook for 10minutes.
• Check for taste and adjust if necessary.
• Serve hot with any stiff puddings. Pounded yam, Dodo. Semolina, Ground rice amala, etc

 Happy Cooking :)

Rice for All Season

 Jollof Rice

 

Nearly half of the world's population depend on rice for sustenance; 6 billion people love to eat rice. Rice is an all season meal.

 

Jollof Rice is a dish many people hunger for. It is very popular meal in parties; if you don’t have this particular dish you have not prepared for party!

If you know how to prepare Jollof Rice, you can confidently invite friends to your party.

 Ingredients:

 
•  ¼ Litre of Vegetable Oil
• 1 Whole Chicken or 11b of  Beef 
• 3 Ripe Tomatoes
• Red Bell Peppers
• 1 Tablespoon  of Tomato Puree
• 2 Red Chilli Peppers
• 4 Leafs of Bay leaf
• 20g  Margarine or butter
• 2 Crushed Cloves of Garlic
• 3 Cubes  of Maggi  (Seasoning stock)
• 2 Cubes of Chicken or Beef Stock
• Chicken or  Beef seasoning
• 1 Teaspoonful of  Curry  Powder
• 1 Large Onion
• 3 Litres of water
• Salt
• Soy  sauce
• Parsley or Lettuce
• Dry Thyme
• 1400g Brown Rice

 

Directions:    

• Wash the Chicken or (beef) thoroughly

• Put it in a sauce pan and add pinch of salt
• Add 1 litre of water
• Add the crushed garlic, add half of the onion
• Add half a teaspoonful of thyme
• Add 2 cubes of Maggi
• Stir it together and cover to cook for 20mins
• Blend tomatoes, with the red chilli peppers, big red bell peppers and the rest of the onion together and pour it into a bowl.
• Take a big saucepan and ‘cream’ the inside with the margarine or butter, place it on the cooker
• Add the grounded pepper with onion and tomatoes, then add the pureed tomatoes
• Pour the oil into the pepper
• Cover to steam for 10mins
• Wash the rice and leave to drain.
• Pour the Chicken or Beef in a clean bowl.
• Drain the stock from it and pour in the sauce pan cooking with the pepper
• Pour the washed rice in the boiling pepper, add  1½ litre of water
• Add pinch of salt to taste
• Add 4 bay leaves to it
• Add  1 teaspoonful of  curry powder
• Cover to steam  for 15 minutes but do not stir at this time lower the cooker for good result
• Open and stir it, test for tender and taste add warm ½ a litre water if necessary, and adjust taste if you need to, by now your Jollof rice should look like mine and should  taste nice if you have followed this system.
  
• Add 4 drops of Soy sauce
• Cover it to steam for 5mins
• Stir again properly making sure everything blends together.
• Leave to cool down and serve
• Garnish with Parsley, cucumber, lettuce, as desired.

 Enjoy your dish!

 See you again for another mouth watering gastronomical experience



The Secret to the Nigerian Juicy Meat Sticks

Mouth-watering Juicy Meat Sticks

Ingredients:

·         2lb of beef

·         Onion (average sized)

·         2litres of water

·         Salt

·         Garlic powder

·         2 Cubes of Maggi (seasoning)

·         Bell Pepper; red, yellow, and green

·         1 small pepper or 2 small chilli peppers

·         1 litre of cooking oil

·         1 Tomato

·         Beef seasoning

·         Dry thyme

 

 

Method;

• Cut the meat into cube sizes and wash the pieces thoroughly
• Put the meat into a pot; add seasoning and a bit of water. To season; add a pinch of salt to taste, a table spoon of dry thyme, half a teaspoon of garlic powder, beef seasoning, two cubes of magi seasoning. Cut half of an onion into slices and sprinkle over the meat.
• Steam boil the meat for approximately 20 minutes until it is tender and the stock (water with the seasoning) appears slightly thick.
• Whilst waiting for the meat, start cutting the different bell peppers up into mid sized (approximately 1inch each side) squares.
• After removing the meat from the heating, drain the stock from the meat, and put the meat into a bowl.
• Grind the tomato and the small red pepper or chillies and the remaining half of the onion together.
• Put 200ml of oil in the frying pan and fry the meat. Add the ground pepper, tomato and onion paste into the frying pan with the meat to fry together. Add a pinch of salt and stir continuously until dark brown (if in doubt about how brown, fry for 7 minutes). When it has finished frying, put the meat in a bowl to cool.
• After the meat has fried, pre-heat the oven to 200˚/gas mark 4.
• Whilst waiting for the oven to warm up, start putting the skewer sticks through the meat and squares of pepper. (Vary the pattern so that there’s a piece of pepper in-between the pieces of meat. Use a different colour of pepper each time you put another square onto a skewer. 
  E.g. -meat-green pepper-meat-red pepper-meat-yellow pepper-…. etc.)
• Sprinkle a bit of the beef seasoning onto the skewers and meat and place them in the oven to grill for 5 minutes.
• Finally, your ‘stick meat’ treat is ready. Enjoy the Taste! Make sure you follow the system to produce the secret of stick meat.

Happy Cooking

 

This is the Day!

Today will mark the start of my cooking blog!!!

I will be sharing with you the recipes I've learned through the years; recipes that made the hearts of my family and friends leap with joy; recipes that have helped some to lose weight and be in the pink of health.

Join me daily and let's have fun :)