Jollof rice is to a West African what Pasta is to an Italian. There are two basic elements in the making of Jollof rice that one can never deviate from, which are;
It has to have its distinctive deep Orange colour which is derived from using a Tomato and or Red Pepper sauce.
The Tomato and or Red Pepper sauce has to packed with flavours as the Rice absorbs those flavours.
This recipe has respected those two basic principles and has included some herbs and a slight different way of cooking the Jollof Rice for that much added flavour.
Naturally Jollof rice must have a smoky flavour which is derived from the slight burn crust at the bottom of the pan.
Usually Jollof rice is cooked in an open coal fire with a heavy bottomed pan to achieve that smoky flavour.
This recipe uses Waakye leaves ( Thaumatococcus Danielli) which gives this Jollof rice a distinctive aromatic flavour. The sauce used for this dish is the residue of the Egg stew recipe.
See below for the recipe (a must try recipe).
INGREDIENTS
400g of a Tomato based stew (I used the Egg stew recipe for
this)
250g of Extra Long Grain Basmati rice
250ml of Water
20g of fresh Thyme or 1 levelled teaspoon of dried Thyme
Salt and Pepper to taste
EXTRA
Waakye or Banana
leaves
Thyme stalks
METHOD
Watch how to create this naturally flavour packed Jollof
rice below;
Don’t forget to subscribe, try the recipe, leave comments
with your feedback and share.
All photos, recipes and videos are by the owner of this
blog.
Dzenklpe or Dzemkoume is a gluten free dish made from roasted Corn flour and a perfectly spiced Tomato stew. It’s enjoyed by the Ewe’s of Ghana and Togolese. Ghana has a similar recipe called Aprapransa. This recipe is versatile in the sense that you can include dried Herrings, Crabs, Prawns or any Seafood of your choosing.
The best flavour to include into this recipe is that of the brown Crab Meat to the sauce, then garnish with your white Crab meat and enjoy. In the spirit of improvising, I used what I had available.
I used my smoky Salsa sauce as the base for this recipe and cooked Prawns.
The video for the Smoky Salsa sauce is available on my YouTube channel, ‘Ndudu by Fafa’.
Let’s start cooking;
INGREDIENTS
350g of my Smoky Salsa sauce (Reserve 100g for serving)
20g of Shrimp powder
300g of roasted Corn flour
300g of cooked Prawns or Dried Herrings
1 large peeled and sliced Avocado
1 levelled teaspoon of salt to taste
METHOD
If you’re using dried Herrings, add it to the sauce and cook for 7 minutes on a low heat. Once you add the roasted Corn batter, it will soften the fish.
In the absence of roasted Corn flour, you can use the normal Ghanaian Corn flour used for Akple.
However, placing the Corn flour on a baking tray and in a preheated Oven, at 180*c, for 10 minutes, will roast your Corn flour perfectly.
Alternatively, if you’re using precooked Prawns, toss it into the remaining sauce, warm it through and serve.
Watch how to make your own Dzenkoume or Dzenklpe below;
Don’t forget to subscribe, like the video, try the recipe, leave comments with your feedback and share with family and friends.
All photos, recipes and videos are by the owner of this blog.
Ghanaian Jollof is 'bae' says thee, who's Ghanaian 😜 and makes Jollof with a twist.
Jollof rice', is a popular West African dish which originated from the Wolof tribe of SeneGambia. 'Jollof' is a one pot dish with the rice cooked in a spiced rich tomato sauce, which gives the Jollof rice its distinctive Orange colour. One can't present a pale or blush looking rice and call it Jollof 'that's a big no no'. Jollof should always have its distinctive deep Orange colour.
Over the years, Ghana and Nigeria have dominated in it's consumption , therefore sparking a healthy debate, to who makes it better (that in itself depicts the different methods of cooking Jollof).
In recent times, there hasn't been a moment (on social media) where the controversy of Jollof making is discussed, either in a positive, critical or competitive way.
Jamie Oliver tried creating his own version which had a backlash from purists critiquing his technique and finished product.
I've come across a few videos of Jollof making which has received both positive and negative comments including mine, and in instances uncalled for abuse.
Using my leftover Jollof to make a Sicilian inspired Jollof Arancini, where the Jollof can be stuffed with meat, cheese, vegetables etc , rolled into a ball and deep fried in Panko breadcrumbs, shows the diverse ways of enjoying Jollof.
The whole idea of a recipe is to inspire you to cook and add your own twist. It takes a lot of time, effort and cost for either Bloggers or Vloggers to put up a recipe, hence offering encouraging words or advise in a respectful manner will have its desired purpose of educating.
Cooking is an art and shouldn't be restricted to one school of thought; just as creatively someone promoted the use of carrots in the absence of tomatoes for sauces (during the shortage and inflated price of tomatoes in Nigeria).
The buzz about who makes the best Jollof is in tandem with everyones Mum been the best cook, hence asking whose Mum is the best cook will heed no results.
I purposely stay clear of such inconclusive arguments and rather keep pushing the boundaries to deepen the frowns of the purists 😜.
Last year I participated in the World Jollof Rice Day and uploaded a video on YouTube in commemoration of the day and this year I wanted to do a write up of all things Jollof rice. It's been viewed over 100,000 times and see why?...
I've created different types of Jollof rice recipes including one which I incorporated the Nigerian stew 'Buka'. BUKA JOLLOF RECIPE
In the years of making Jollof rice, I've used Long grain rice, Short grain rice, Brown rice, Basmati rice, Jasmine rice and Sticky rice. My favourite choice will be Jasmine rice as it lends its perfumery taste to the dish.
When using Jasmine rice, it's best to keep your spices to a minimum to allow the flavour of the rice through. A little Ginger, Chilli, Onion, powdered crayfish, a pinch of Nutmeg and bay leaf always works.
Perfect Coconut rice recipe
Cooking Pots
The best pots to use for Jollof rice are either a heavy bottomed pot or a clay pot.
Traditionally Jollof rice is cooked on hot coal or firewood hence the heavy bottomed pot or clay pot helps reduce the speed to which the bottom burned.
I'm fond of the clay pot as heat is evenly distributed and cooks each grain perfectly. Unlike the heavy bottomed pan, you don't need to stir the Jollof rice as much when using a clay pot. The clay pot also offers a natural smoky infusion to the Jollof.
Spices & Herbs
Most people use curry powder, thyme and bay leaf for their Jollof rice. I love experimenting with spices and herbs, hence I've used smoky Ancho Chillies, Pimenton, Rosemary, Nigella seeds, Sage, Kafir lime, Grains of Selim, to mention but a few.
It's exciting experimenting with spices and herbs in creating different flavours of Jollof.
Cooking Methods
Nigerians prefer to par boil their rice before incorporating it into their sauce, however Ghanaians wash the rice and add to the sauce and slow cook.
In my quest for exploring the best way to cook rice a very good friend of mine , Ayesha taught me how it's made in Pakistan. I noticed the method was a cross between the Ghanaian and Nigerian way of cooking their Jollof rice, which was a welcomed education.
The Perfect Jollof sauce
The key to making the best tasting Jollof is the sauce and cooking technique you use.
Find the Jollof sauce recipe here, which you can make in advance and freeze for up to a month.
Jollof Sauce Recipe
Washing your preferred rice till the water runs clear and soaking it for about 15 minutes before cooking, guarantees you a perfect fluffy rice each time.
Once the Jollof sauce is ready add your rice and dry fry it for 5 minutes or until the rice is well coated.
How much water do I add?
Achieving a fluffy and tasty rice requires little water and trapping the steam to cook the rice. Eg; For 350g of rice , I'll use 150ml of water. Trap the steam of the rice by using grease proof paper or banana leaves and cover with the lid till it's perfectly cooked.
Enjoying a lovely cup of Robois tea, listening to jazz fm , and thinking of what to make for lunch. The idea of creating a new recipe, by experimenting gets me excited. A quick dash to my fridge and larder helped my decision on making Buka Jollof rice with Lamb Kleftiko.
Buka is a slow cooking rich tomato, Palm oil and pepper stew, synonymous with Nigerians.
My previous post has the recipe for Buka stew, which is the base for this recipe.
The secret to a perfect Jollof rice is to use less water, cook gently on a low heat and allow the rice to cook in it's own steam, something a clay pot with it's lid offers. Alternatively you can bake it in a casserole dish or use any sauce pan, kitchen foil and a tight lid to seal the steam.
Kleftiko, (stolen Lamb) is a Greek way of slow cooking lamb in herbs in a sealed earthenware pot. This process allows the lamb to cook in it's own juices with an end result of moist, tender and tasty lamb. A casserole dish with foil and it's lid will also work for the lamb.
Ingredients
Serves 6
Jollof rice
3 ladles of Buka stew
2 cups of long grain rice or basmati rice washed and soaked for 15 minutes. I like to soak my rice as this takes some of the starch away ( a secret process to get fluffy and separated rice) and cuts your cooking time in half.
1 cup of chicken, vegetarian or beef stock.
Salt to taste
Ingredients
Serves 6
Lamb Kleftiko
1kg of diced leg of lamb (get your butcher to cut into your preferred cubed size)
20g of ginger
1 teaspoon of oregano and thyme
2 medium sized onions
1 clove of garlic\
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 whole habanero chilli
1 vegetable or Ham stock cube.
Salt and pepper to taste
Method (Jollof rice)
Place a clay pot on a medium heat and add the Buka stew.
Once warmed through add the washed and soaked rice and mix well.
Cook the rice and sauce for about 10 minutes making sure you stir to avoid any burns. Once the rice is coated in the Buka stew, add your preferred stock.
Stir and cover with the pot's lid or if using a saucepan cover with the foil and lid.
Turn the heat down and cook gently for half an hour.
Remove from the heat and leave the rice to steam in it's own juices for a further 10 minutes.
Your Jollof rice will be fluffy and El dente ( having a slight bite), and ready to serve.
Method(Lamb Kleftiko)
In a blender add the ginger, garlic, chilli, oregano, thyme and your preferred stock cube. Add a little of water and blend to a thick paste.
Add the mixture and lemon juice to the lamb and mix well.
Marinade the lamb in the fridge for a minimum of 4hrs or preferably overnight.
Add a tablespoon of olive oil in your clay pot, place on a high heat and brown your lamb for about 5 minutes, turning frequently
Preheat your oven to 180*c
Place your clay pot of lamb in the oven and cook for 40 minutes.
Once cooked remove from the oven and leave it to rest for 5 minutes.
Separate the lamb from it's juices to a bowl. Add the lamb juices to the Jollof rice and mix well.
Then add the lamb pieces and mix well. Pour the rice in a serving bowl with your preferred salad.
Watch with amusement as everyone will be rushing to get their fair portion of meat and rice. Enjoy!
All photos and recipes are by the owner of this blog.
'Jollof rice', is a popular West African dish which originated from the Wolof tribe of SeneGambia. Over the years, Ghana and Nigeria have dominated in it's consumption , therefore sparking a healthy debate, to who makes it better (that in itself depicts the different methods of cooking Jollof rice).
Jollof rice, is a one pot dish, with a spiced tomato stew base, which the rice is cooked in (it's most likely to be served at West African's social gatherings or restaurants).
During the famine years (between 1983-84) of Ghana, Jollof was a staple dish in my household, with Mum cooking it with spiced dried meat (biltong) or corned beef.
Mums Jollof had this smoky, perfectly spiced taste which I loved scraping the saucepan with a spoon (much to her disapproval) for the flavoursome crunchy bits (Kanzo).
I prefer my Jollof, at most 10hrs after cooking, as I believe the flavours intensify then. However, one has to refrigerate the rice no more than an hour after cooking (to prevent food poisoning) and steam it till it's piping hot before consumption. Please refrain from re-heating the rice again and consume within 24hrs.
There are countless variations and flavours to this dish. One can change the Jollof's taste by the type of herbs and spices they incorporate, but one can't change the colour and call it Jollof.
Jollof has always caused a stir, with purist holding unto the traditional methods of cooking and the distinctive dark orange colour.
Check out my Buka Jollof (made from the ever popular Nigerian stew 'Buka'.
Add the spiced tomatoes mix and cook the sauce till it thickens to a paste. (This should take about 40-45minutes).
The reason for the slow cooking, is to intensify the natural flavours of the sauce.
Add the thyme leaves and stir.
Wash the rice till the water is clear and soak it for about 15 minutes.
Tip
The washing reduces the starch content of the rice. This helps in achieving the perfect, separated and fluffy rice.
The soaking cuts the cooking time in half and helps the rice to absorb the flavours of the sauce.
Add the washed rice to the sauce and stir fry for 5-7 minutes (making sure the rice has absorbed the sauce and it's well coated).
Add your preferred stock and stir. Once it starts to boil, lower the heat, cover with scrunched up baking paper, grease proof paper or foil and finally cover with the lid.
The whole point of this is to trap the steam in the saucepan and allow the rice to cook with little water. This will also intensify the flavour of the rice.
Cook for 20-22 minutes, till fluffy and el dente ( I prefer my rice to have a little bite). This is optional and you can steam it till it's completely soft but not soggy.
Turn the heat off and leave the rice to continue cooking in it's steam for 7-8 minutes.
Serve with your preferred meat, poultry or fish and salad or steamed vegetables.
In this instance I paired my Jollof with grilled Tilapia. Recipe coming up soon on my YouTube page, 'Ndudu by Fafa'.
Enjoy with chilled bottle of beer or a Pineapple & Ginger juice.
All photos and recipes are by the owner of this blog.
