COCONUT RICE (ANGWA MO)

Hello everyone, 

I hope you enjoyed this episode of the popular Ghanaian inspired Coconut rice with the spicy tomato sauce and fried fish. I particularly enjoyed preparing this dish and serving 'Uncle Ato' his portion. 

Coconut rice in Ghana is mostly paired with an omelette and it's the quick, fix dish when one is tired. Enjoy this old school recipe. 

Serves 6

Ingredients; 

Rice:

2 cups of Jasmine rice / Long grain rice/ Basmati rice/Brown rice 

1 cup of water / Vegetable stock/ 

Alternatively use 1 cup of Coconut milk and half a cup of coconut juice. 

1 finely diced shallots

4 tablespoons of Coconut oil

Salt to taste

Half a teaspoon of blended green chilli and onions. 

1 teaspoon of cumin seeds

Fish

6  medium sized Sea Breams/ Red Snapper or your preferred fish (Gutted, cleaned and divided in two, by your fish monger )

100g of flour

1 teaspoon of freshly milled black pepper

Salt to taste

1 sprig of Rosemary 

700ml Sunflower oil

Tomato sauce

125g of Tomato purée mixed with 150ml of water to a smooth paste. 

700g of fresh sun ripened Tomato cut into chunks 

3 large Red peppers cut into chunks (optional)

20g of roughly chopped peeled Ginger

10 fresh red chillies

10g of crushed Guinean pepper or Grains of Paradise. 

3 large Red Onions

2 large white onions. 

150ml of Groundnut oil

1 Shrimp stock cube

Salt and pepper to taste.

Watch the video on how to make the perfect tomato sauce. 

Method;

Sauce:

Add the oil to a saucepan and place on a medium heat. 

Blend the onions, Grains of Paradise, Ginger and chillies into a paste. 

Add the 'Onion blend' to the oil and fry till the volume reduces in half. 

Add the tomato purée and cook till it turns into a paste. This should take about  12-15 minutes. 

Blend the tomatoes and pepper till smooth. 

Add the tomatoes to the saucepan and stir till well mixed. 

Reduce the heat to a low setting, add the shrimp stock and cook for 25 minutes. 

Add the chunks of cut onions and cook for a further 2 minutes. Take your sauce off the heat and use when needed.  

Rice;

Wash the rice till the water runs clear and soak for about 5 minutes

Whilst the rice is soaking, melt the coconut oil in a saucepan, on a medium heat

Add the shallots and cumin seeds. Fry for 2 minutes till the onions starts to brown (Careful not to burn them)

Drain the water, off the soaked rice 

Add the rice to the oil and fry for 3 minutes. 

Tip: 

To intensify the coconut flavour of the rice, why not try using coconut milk instead of water or stock? 

Add your preferred stock/ water / Coconut milk & juice. 

Stir and increase the heat. 

Once the rice starts to boil, decrease the heat to a low setting. 

Cover with a scrunched baking paper and the lid. 

Cook the rice for 20-28 minutes or until fluffy

Fish

Tip:

Wipe the fish with a kitchen towel to get rid of any excess water. (Crispy skin secret)

Salt the fish and bring to room temperature.

Add the oil to a frying pan or wok

Place the oil on a medium heat for 3-4 minutes. 

Add the sprig of Rosemary and fry till crispy. Set aside for later. 

In a bowl add the flour, black pepper,  your preferred optional herb or spice (Rosemary, thyme, Sage) and mix well. 

Toss the fish in the flour, dust off any excess flour and gently lower the fish into the oil (All necessary precautions should be taken, when dealing with hot oil). Repeat this process until all the fish is fried. 

Tip;

Don't overload the wok or frying pan with the fish, as this will decrease the temperature of the oil, guaranteeing you a 'soggy fried fish'. 

Fry the fish for 3 minutes on each side and place on a blotting sheet  (to get rid of any excess oil)

Ato Brown (Director, ABNTV)

To serve: 

Best served with a crunchy mixed green salad and a chilled beer. 

All photos and recipe are by the owner of this blog. 

RED RED RECIPE

'Red red', a slang for black eyed beans cooked in a Palm oil stew in Ghana, is a popular dish. The distinct red colour of the Palm oil is what lends it's name to the description of this dish. 

It's very important to source the best spiced Palm oil , known as 'Zomi'. The taste for quality is by finding the distinct natural, aromatic and creamy oil taste, that it should have. 

Ingredients;

Serves 4

450g of Black eyed beans (soaked overnight in 1.5 litres of cold water)

1.2 litres of water

2 large, thinly sliced banana shallots / white onions

2 tablespoons of spiced Palm oil (Zomi)

4 large blended tomatoes

30g of blended ginger 

1 finely diced Habanero chili or 2 green chilies (optional)

Shrimp stock (Optional)

Salt and pepper to taste.

METHOD:

Tip: Soaking the beans overnight, helps cut your cooking time in half. For a quicker option soak the beans in warm water for 35-45 minutes. 

Black eyed beans

Drain the water from the soaked beans and wash the beans by running it under the tap

Pour the water into a saucepan and place on a medium heat.

Add the beans and cook for about 37 -45 minutes. (I prefer my beans with a slight bite hence I cook it for 30 minutes).

Set the cooked beans aside and place a saucepan on a medium heat.

Stew;

Add the Palm oil (Zomi) to a saucepan and warm it up.

Add the onions and fry gently for 2 minutes.

Add the chopped chilies and grated ginger. Fry for 5 minutes and add the blended tomatoes.

Cook the tomatoes gently for 5-7 minutes and add the stock cube (optional)

Cook for a further 5-8 minutes (until the oil separates from the tomatoes).

Add the beans and it's juices and mix well. 

Cook the beans, gently for another 10-15 minutes or until the sauce thickens and has a double cream consistency.

Add salt to taste and serve with crunchy or plain fried Plantain 

Crunchy Plantain

Ripened Plantain 

 Ingredients;

3 ripened, peeled and sliced Plantains into a bowl

125g of blended cornflakes in a bowl

2 whisked eggs in a bowl

Salt

600ml Groundnut oil or Sunflower oil

Crunchy Plantain

 Method;

Add the oil to a frying pan and place on a medium heat, till it’s hot but not smoking.

Add a pinch of salt to the Plantain and mix well.

Dip the Plantain to the egg mixture, roll into the corn flakes and then fry for a minute and a half on each side or until golden.

Cover your colander with a couple of sheets of kitchen paper. 

Using a slotted ladle, remove the perfectly cooked plantain and place it in the colander. 

Continue the above process until you’ve fried all the Plantain.

Perfect to have it on it’s own or with beans stew.

Cassava / Yuca

Best served with Gari 

Gari

(A West African staple made out of grated cassava and dried, with a resemblance and uses to couscous)

Find more inspiring recipes on my YouTube channel, 'Ndudu by Fafa', like this 'party Jollof rice' recipe.  

All photos and recipes are by owner of the blog. Seek permission before use and always reference it to my page.

FRESH FUFU (without pounding)

Over a year ago, I was gifted Cassava and Plantain by my sweet Aunt. My excitement of receiving these African ingredients was short lived, as all I wanted was Fufu.

Fufu and Lamb light soup

You might wonder , why it was a problem and not proceed to boil the Plantain and Cassava, pound them separately and then together to achieve the traditional soft Fufu from Ghana (a traditional Ashanti dish). 

Cassava and Plantain

My dilemma, was I had no pestle or mortar as I reside in the UK, hence the possibility of borrowing the utensils from a neighbour wasn't an option. 

I craved the taste of freshly pounded Fufu and the powdered Fufu mix I had, didn't fit into my crave of 'Fresh Fufu'. 

My inspiration came from the powdered Fufu and Kokonte ( Cassava flour steamed into a dumpling ). 

Cassava

My understanding and interpretation of my inspiration was rather simple.  If the  Cassava, Cocoyam and Plantain could be processed naturally into flour and mimic the texture of Fufu, it might work if steamed and cooked, like one would Banku.

Un-ripened Plantain and Cassava
I love experimenting with ingredients and I was excited about this prospect.

This recipe was featured on my cookery show 'Ndudu by Fafa' on ABNTV, Sky 235 or Freeview 252. 

Serves 4

Ingredients:

300g of  peeled un-ripened Plantain cut into cubes.

460g of peeled  Cassava, scraped, de-stringed and cut into cubes. 

500ml of water for a soft Fufu or 400ml for a firmer Fufu.

Method 

Tip:

It's important, you use a very good blender. I used Vitamix (which blends everything into a silky smooth paste). 

Transfer the Cassava and Plantain into your blender and add 450ml of water. 

Blend into a silky smooth paste. 

Blended Fufu mix

Transfer the contents into a saucepan and place on a medium heat. 

Tip:

It's very important you stir the mixture consistently, to avoid any lumps. 

Using a wooden spatula, keep stirring till you have a smooth, thick steamed paste. This should take about 8-10min. 

Warning!

Please don't be tempted to leave it alone when you're in the process of thickening the batter. This is to avoid having lumps in your 'Fufu'. 

Add the remaining 50ml of water to the Fufu, cover the saucepan with it's lid, reduce the heat to a lower setting and steam for 8-10min

Information: 

Steaming the Fufu, cooks the mixture further and eliminates the raw taste.

Increase the heat to a medium fire and stir the mixture till well combined. 

Tip:

Please don't be alarmed, if your Fufu looks too soft at this stage,  it gets firmer once it's cooled down. 

Pour the Fufu into a bowl, smear the surface with a teaspoon  of water ( to prevent any film forming on the surface and leave to cool down completely. 

Once cooled, shape into your preferred ball and serve with your favourite soup. 

This recipe works with Cocoyam and Yam. Enjoy fresh Fufu without the hassle of pounding. 

'Ndudu by Fafa', always pushing the boundaries with African cuisines. 

Watch the video on my YouTube page 

Try the recipe, #NopoundingFufu on Instagram to be featured, share the recipe, don't forget to leave a comment and subscribe.

All photos and recipes are by the owner of this blog. 

PEANUT BRITTLE (NKATIE CAKE)

Christmas is the time of year to say thanks to all your family and friends who've supported you throughout the year. It's also a perfect moment to restore broken relationships, forgive and share with the less fortunate in society.

The essence of Christmas sometimes is lost, when one only concentrates on what presents they can receive, what to wear, what parties to attend or what they'll eat without including extending a helping hand to the less fortunate. 

Christmas needn't be expensive and riddle one with debt, especially when your next pay check will arrive 6 weeks later. Budgeting and being clever with what you give is paramount in achieving a successful Yuletide. 

During my childhood in Ghana, Christmas was centred on food, visiting family, friends, sharing food or clothes with a struggling neighbour, going to church and forming new relationships. 

I've compiled a series of inspiring, competitively priced recipes and ideas for Christmas presents, which will be featured on my blog till Christmas Eve.

 A great and fulfilling thing to do at Christmas is to give to individuals who are less fortunate. Giving to one who cannot reciprocate the favour and knowing you're responsible for placing a smile on their face at Christmas is an amazing feeling. Try it and share your experience.

Homemade presents are a great way of showing appreciation to your loved

ones and equally satisfying to spend the time making it.

I chose to share this recipe as it's a snack that's readily available in Ghana , particularly after church services. Truthfully as a child, I had the dilemma of using the money my Mum gave me for offertory  to buying more of the peanut brittle (Nkatie cake) or (Kubey cake)Caramel coconut bites (not a fair choice) than to use it for what was intended. Mum sussed out my dilemma and gave me the eye to let go of the money and rewarded me later with choice. I would love to hear from you about your childhood experience with Nkatie and Kubey cake. 

Thanks to everyone who contributed in naming the snack (Peanut brittle) in their respective traditional languages. 

Here we have Peanut brittles or Nkatie cake (Ghana), Konkada (Togo) and Granat cake (Sierra Leone). Feel free to share more traditional names by leaving comments below. 

For a cost effective way to wrap your present, use a brown or white baking paper and a ribbon for a festive look. 

Ingredients;

180g  of roasted peanuts 

150g of caster sugar

100g of glucose syrup

10g of butter

A silicone mat is required for this recipe. However if you don't have one a well oiled surface will be idle 

Substitutes

Cashew nuts, Walnuts, Pecans, Pistachios or Hazelnuts 

Method 

How to roast peanuts

Preheat the oven to 160*c

Evenly spread 250g of raw peanuts in a baking tray.

Place the baking tray in the oven and bake for 10-12 minutes or until it browns slightly. 

Remove the tray from the oven and leave the peanuts to cool down completely. 

Tip

(Peeling peanuts) 

Place the roasted peanuts in a clean Kitchen napkin and rub in between your hands for about 3 minutes.

Shake the nuts (for the skins to settle at the bottom) 

Separate the peeled peanuts from the skins and empty the skins in your bin. Place the peeled peanuts in a bowl and set aside.

Light Caramel sauce

Place the sugar and glucose in a heavy based saucepan. 

Mix everything together till you have a thick paste. 

Ensure the paste is evenly distributed in the saucepan and place on a medium heat. 

Watch the sugars dissolve and turn into a plane brown colour. This should take about 7-10 minutes. 

Tip

Don't be tempted to leave your caramel as it burns quickly.

Remove the caramel from the heat when you've achieved the pale brown colour. 

Add the peanuts and butter to the caramel and mix quickly. 

Tip the contents on top of the silicon mat and spread evenly using a spatula. 

Leave till it cools down and cut lengthways or to your preferred shape. 

Store in an airtight container till you're ready to wrap it as a present or serve. 

All photos and recipes are by the owner of this blog. 

Try the recipe, leave a comment, subscribe and share.