Category: Recipes for African and Caribbean Cuisine

AMALA GBEGIRI EWEDU AND STEW Most Nigerians will agree that this classic is a highly savoury dish. The combination of Ewedu, Gbegiri and stew forms a mouth watering slippery vegetable soup that aids the smooth passage of Amala down your oesophagus. I say yummy! INGREDIENTS - 300g or 4-6 cups Yam Flour(Elubo) - 100g Beans - 400g Ewedu vegetable - 8 0r more Red pepper - 10 Small Red Chilli Peppers - 7 or more Fresh Tomatoes - 1 bottle of palm oil - 20g Locust beans - ¼ oz Potassium salt - 450g Beef/Fish - 200g Snails - 50g Crayfish - Maggi/Salt - Other seasoning METHOD STEP 1 Soak the beans for 30 minutes, remove the brown back by rubbing between your hands or use any technique you find convenient then wash thoroughly. STEP 2 Pour the beans into a cooking pan, add enough water and a tiny bit of Potassium salt ( Kanhu) then leave to cook until the beans is very soft or watery then add 1 ½ cooking spoon of palm oil. STEP 3 Add a bit of chilli pepper, a pinch of salt, Maggi cube, and then marsh the beans together into a paste until it becomes creamy. This is your Gbegiri. If too thick add some water. STEP 4 Chop / slice, then blend the Ewedu, add it to a small pot of boiling water with a bit of Potassium salt (Kanhu) to soften, include the locust beans, crayfish and a pinch of salt to taste. Cook the Ewedu until it feels slippery or draws. STEP 5 Blend your red peppers, tomatoes and the small chilli peppers with onions to make a stew. (To make the stew) i. Add 1 or 2 cooking spoons of palm oil and slice few onions into a thick hot pan, allow to fry for 2-3minutes, then add the pepper plus some seasoning (curry, thyme, salt, Maggi, meat, snail). ii. Leave all to cook for 10-12 minutes, taste it, if too hot or tasting raw pepper, leave to cook for further 10 minutes. STEP 6 Add all the assorted meats, fish and snail. Boil water and prepare the yam flour. Sprinkle the yam flour into a boiling water and stir, till solid or texture is smooth. Add a little bit of water, cover to steam together for 5 minutes and stir round with wooden spoon until it becomes soft then make dough. Your Amala should be ready. Serve the stew with the Gbegiri and Ewedu on top, garnish with your selection of meat, snails etc. Sit, relax, enjoy with your favourite drink. Source web address  20 Easy food Recipes

EDIKAI IKONG WITH POUNDED YAM Edikai Ikong is a scrumptious vegetable soup from Calabar, Southern Nigeria. It is made from an assorted selection of vegetables, palm oil and spices. This dish is truly delicious and a nation's favourite. Hope you have fun cooking and eating it. INGREDIENTS Serves 4 - 1 tuber Yam - 400g Ugu/pumpkin leaves - 200g Waterleaves or Gure in Yoruba - 1kg boiled assorted meat - 200g Periwinkle - 200g boiled Dried Stock Fish (pre-soaked) - 4 pieces boiled Crabs and or Snails - 100g Shrimps - 50g Crayfish - 300ml Palm oil - 1 large Onion - 1 large fresh tomato - 2 or 3 pieces red chilli peppers - 10g Locust beans - Maggi and salt METHOD STEP 1 Fry 3 or 4 cooking spoons of palm oil into a deep cooking pan, slice in a few onions. STEP 2 Add blended pepper and allow to cook for 3 minutes. Slice in red chilli peppers, tomatoes to add colour and a little bit of chopped garlic (optional) then steam for 3 minutes. STEP 3 Add the sliced waterleaves; do not add water because waterleaves generate water on their own. Now cook for 3 minutes. STEP 4 Add remaining ingredients, periwinkle, shrimps, boiled stock fish, smoked stock fish, boiled assorted beef, crayfish, crabs, snails and locust beans.(Season with Maggi/ salt) Stir all the ingredients together, then leave for 2 minutes. STEP 5 Add the Ugu, a bit of water then stir, leave for 2 minutes. STEP 6 Serve with Pounded yam. Seasoning Tip: Try using three cubes of Maggi and a pinch of salt to ensure your cooking never has too much or too little salt. Always taste before adding salt. Source web address  20 Easy food Recipes

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. It is a very flexible dish that you can experiment with by adding your own signature ingredients. INGREDIENTS Serves 4 - 500g 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 - 500g Chicken - 100g Boiled seasoned snails - 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 3mins then add water. STEP 2 Add the rice and bay leaf (optional) to above. STEP 3 In another cooking pan boil the shrimps, crab, and snails together, add a bit of seasoning till cooked then add or separately boil green peas inside for 2mins. 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 snail, 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 Source web address  20 Easy food Recipes  

BOILED YAM with GARDEN EGG SHRIMPS EGGS AND SMOKED FISH This is a very tasty experimental dish. It can be eaten as breakfast, lunch or dinner. INGREDIENTS Serves 4 - 1 tuber Yam - 6 pieces Garden egg (igba) - 6 or more Chicken eggs - 2 or 3 Fresh tomatoes - 1 large Onion - 3 small red chilli peppers - 1 ½ cooking spoon Vegetable oil - 20g Shrimps - 1 piece of Smoked Fish - 1 can of Sardine or Corn beef (optional) - Optional seasoning (thyme, Maggi, curry) METHOD STEP 1 Slice yam into round pieces, remove back with a knife, and then place in a pot of water. Add a bit of sugar and salt, put garden egg in a black thick paper bag then boil either separately or with the yam. STEP 2 If garden egg is boiled or soft, pound or marsh with a small mortar. STEP 3 Add 1 ½ cooking spoons of vegetable oil into a deep frying pan, slice in few onions, some tomatoes and the red chilli peppers then cook for 1 min. STEP 4 Add the sardine/corn beef, smoked fish, shrimps and the garden eggs. Meanwhile, whisk some chicken eggs in a bowl with a little bit of thyme, curry and a cube of Maggi. STEP 5 Continue cooking by adding very few slices of scent leaves, the egg mix and some seasoning then fry and stir all together for 3-4 minutes. STEP 6 Cook yam to tender, test with a fork and serve as pictured above. Source web address  20 Easy food Recipes

Moi Moi, so tasty they named it twice. Okay that was a bit corny but I love this dish made from beans/black eyed peas. I think it makes an excellent Saturday morning breakfast because it is highly nutritious whilst filling. Serve with custard or if throwing a party alongside Jollof rice. INGREDIENTS Serves 4 - 500g Beans/Black Eyed Peas. - 4 Boiled Eggs (optional) - 2 ½ cooking spoons of Palm oil /Vegetable oil - Cooked Fish/Sardines - ½ Clove Garlic/Ginger - 60g Shrimps (optional) - Leaves / Sandwich bags / Aluminium cups. - 4 Fresh Tomatoes - 7 Small Chilli Pepper - Maggi/Salt METHOD STEP 1 Soak the Beans/Black eyed peas for not longer than 30 – 45 minutes, wash and peel off the brown back of the beans by rubbing the beans with your palms until it becomes white then wash thoroughly. Be sure to remove all the brown peels. STEP 2 Wash the beans till all is clean white, add onions, red chilli pepper, tomatoes, chopped small garlic and a bit of ginger (very little), blend all together. STEP 3 Boil the eggs, shrimps and fish STEP 4 Add 2 ½ tablespoon of palm oil or vegetable oil and seasoning like Maggi/salt then stir, taste if seasoning is okay. STEP 5 Slice the egg and shred the fish make sure to remove the bones. STEP 6 Rinse the leave/sandwich bag/aluminium cups, fold into a cone brake the bottom backward to avoid leakage, pour the grounded beans, add few shrimps, fresh sliced eggs and wrap the leave. STEP 7 Put water in a cooking pan and add all the wraps inside cover to cook for 30mins. STEP 8 Open one wrap to see if cooked and solid. Note: Instead of leaves use sandwich bags or aluminium cups. Tip: Make aluminium cups by cutting open cans of condensed or evaporated milk. Use palm oil instead of Vegetable oil with enough large red peppers to improve the richness and reddishness of Moi Moi, which makes it more appetising. Source web address  20 Easy food Recipes