Okro and Ogbono Soup with Carrot Semolina

The plating and styling of Nigerian food has gone through dramatic changes in recent times. There is more consciousness in healthy eating and living, hence the need to reinvent old time comfort food to a more appealing and appetizing experience.

I love incorporating veggies in my meals because it adds bulk and reduces the caloric content of the food. So for my semolina I would be making it with steamed and pureed carrots. I have seen some make garri with ugu or cabbage but I love it with carrot. The carrot lends its sweetness to the semolina and changes it to a vibrant orange colour.

Ingredients
500g beef
2 cups Okro, sliced 2 cups Ugu, shredded
1 cup Ogbono, milled
1/2 cup Crayfish, milled
1 cup or small pack flaked stock fish
1/2 teaspoon Cameroon pepper, milled
5 fresh pepper, atarodo, finely sliced
3/4 cups Palm oil
2 teaspoon Salt
4 cube seasoning
1 onion, medium sized

1. Put the beef in a pot add half of the onion, 2 cubes seasoning, Cameroon pepper and a light sprinkle of salt about 1/2 teaspoon of salt.
   
2. Bring the beef to a roaring boil. Add the washed flaked stock fish, reduce heat allow to simmer for about 20 minutes.In a small sauce pan heat the palm oil until very hot. Add the milled ogbono and stir quickly, it will form up( don't worry its an expected reaction). It's been said that this method of frying the ogbono makes for a tasty soup. I don't know about that or rather I don't agree. The only thing I noticed about frying the ogbono is that it makes the ogbono dissolve better in the soup. Hence there are no lumps and bits of the ogbono in the soup. Also because it quickly dissolves in the oil it reduces the cooking time.
   
3. Add the palm oil and ogbono mixture in the pot of beef, put in the remaining onions increase the heat from low to high.  Allow to boil for 5 minutes add the opeyi, crayfish, cube seasonings and salt cook for another 5-7 minutes.
4. Remove the pot lid at this point do not cover the pot again until after the soup is cooked and served except the soup is to be eaten at a later time. Leaving the pot uncovered will help to reduce the continued cooking of
   
   the veggies so that the okro and ugu still retains it colour and brightness.
5. Add the sliced peppers and ugu cook for a minute, in goes the okro with the rest of its relative in the pot. I allow it to cook for a minute because I would be serving it immediately. If I was to serve it later I turn off the heat immediately. Okro cook very fast so to retain its texture and colour DON'T OVER COOK!

Carrot semolina

5 carrots
1 cup semolina
water

Cut up the carrots into small sizes put in a pot add enough water to cover, cook until

tender. Puree the carrots in a blender use the water for boiling the carrots to puree it. Pour into a pot if the water is too small to make the semolina add more. Bring the carrot water to a boil stir in the semolina and make as directed by the manufacturer. (I forgot to get pictures when i was making the semolina but i hope my description helps:)

Serve with the soup above.

Modern Thali

Last Saturday was my birthday and I decided to make an intercontinental meal. After much deliberations and debate between I and my kids we finally arrived at this menu. Actually I wanted to make this while my kids gave suggestions such as pizza, pasta, lasagna (can u see they all wanted Italian). Since I was the birthday girl, my wishes were obliged!

This combines Indian, Kenyan, Arab and Oriental cuisine, the curry is India, while kachumbari is native to kenya. I tweeked the veggies a bit from the original recipes. I used less yogurt for the raita and less tomatoes for the kachumbari. This was an impressive spread and would make a perfect menu for a get together or a special occasion where you want to impress and best of all it is easy to make.

Curry Chicken

Ingredients

1kg Chicken thigh (bones removed and cut into cubes)

3 Medium sized Onion

1 tbsp curry powder

2 cloves garlic

1 70g can tomato paste

½ Can coconut milk

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp chili powder

2 chicken cubes

1 handful coriander (or parsley if coriander is not available)



Chicken breast can be substituted but I prefer the thigh because it’s more flavourful. I used the bigger chicken thigh popular called orobo because it is easier to de-bone and cube.

1. In a hot pan heat the oil, add the chicken sprinkle with the chicken cubes fry until browned on both sides and the chicken starts to release its oils. ( if your pan is small you can split the chicken into two and fry in batches, do not over crowd the pan so that the chicken would brown evenly and nicely)

2. After the chicken has rendered its fat remove the chicken from the pan, sauté the onion in the pan with the chicken fat for 5 minutes add the garlic and cook for a few seconds.

3. Mix in the tomato paste, curry powder, chili, cumin and turmeric.

4. Pour in the coconut milk, cover and simmer on low heat until chicken is tender. If it starts to thicken too much add a cooking spoon of water or less.

5. I didn’t add salt because the chicken cubes already has salt and since the sauce is thick the saltiness from the cubes is enough.




Raita


1 cup plain yogurt

2 large cucumbers, chopped

2 tbsp finely chopped onion

1 tbsp chopped coriander

1 tbsp lemon juice

Pinch of salt

½ tsp cumin





1. In a mixing bowl combine all the chopped items together

2. Add the yogurt, lemon juice, pinch of salt and cumin

3. Mix all together and serve

I couldn’t get plain yogurt so I used vanilla flavoured yogurt it was alright just had a bit of ice cream flavour to it,





Kachumbari
2 large tomatoes

1 large onion

1 green pepper (capsicum)

1 small cabbage

1 tbsp spoon olive oil

1 tbsp lemon juice

Handful of coriander, chopped

Pinch of salt

Pinch of chili



1. Finely julienne( slice) all the vegetables put in a bowl

2. Mix the olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a another bowl

3. Pour over the vegetables and mix set aside in the refrigerator until serving time.





Braised Rice
1 cup rice

1 small onion

1 tsp butter

2 cups chicken stock

Salt and pepper

2 chopped carrots

1. In a pot sauté the onions and carrot in butter

2. Washed the rice and add to the pan gently fry in the butter for a few minutes

3. Add the chicken stock and the seasonings, bring to a boil

4. Place in an oven at 250 degrees for about 15 minutes or in place of an oven allow to cook on the burner until ready.

Couscous
1 cup couscous

1 small onion

1 carrot

Pinch salt

Pinch pepper

1 tsp olive oil

2 cups chicken stock



1. Bring the onion and carrot to a boil in the chicken stock.

2. Add the oil, salt and pepper, turn of the heat

3. Pour in the couscous cover the pot allow to stand for 5 minutes

4. Turns the heat on to the lowest after 5 minutes and allow to simmer slowly for 2 minutes

5. Fluff with a fork and serve.



Pappadom
A pack of pappadoms

Oil for deep-frying



1. Heat the oil until high for deep-frying, drop one pappadom in the hot oil pressed down in the middle with a soup ladle while using another flat spoon to scoop the pappadom together towards the soup ladle.

2. Try to make it form the shape of a bowl.

3. Scoop out and drain



Plate all the different dishes as creatively as you can, enjoy!

Candied Cashew nut with Shrimp and Veggies

Spaghetti is a versatile dish that pairs beautifully with many types of sauce. In Nigeria people are more familiar with tomato based sauces almost like Italian marinara sauce. As this blog points out cooking is a creatively outlet and our popular food can be tweaked to blend with other cuisine.

So I made a chinese inspired sauce, I couldn't find hoisin sauce in the stores I went to in Lagos. Being one of the ingredients called for in the recipe I substituted it with oyster sauce which is more commonly found here.

I ate this last nite and had it again this morning if I hadn't finished it off this morning I would probably eat it again for lunch and dinner and again tomorrow and again next tomorrow..... I guess you get the picture of how good this food is. Try this recipe out but don't be like me....... eat it for three days in a row!

 Ingredients

1 packet spaghetti ( the tiny ones)

1/2 cup Cashew nuts

1/2 tbsp sugar

500 g prawns

2 cups Shredded Cabbage

1 cup Julienne carrots

2 cups green beans

1 cup frozen mixed veggies ( corns, peas, carrots etc)

4 cloves garlic

1 ginger root, Julienne

1 tsp red pepper flakes

2 chicken flavour cubes

2 tbsp dark soy sauce

1 tbsp oyster sauce

1 cooking spoon peanut oil

salt

2 cups water ( get this from the water used to boil the spaghetti)

Break the cashew nut into pieces, soak them in water for 2 minutes. Drain the nuts and put it into a pot add the sugar and a pinch of salt and cook over medium to low heat. Cook until the cashew nut caramelizes transfer into a flat dish and allow to cool. Separate it when it cools completely.

Cook the spaghetti according to manufacturer's instruction reserve about 2 cups of the water used to boil the spaghetti. It would be used to make the sauce.

 

Making the sauce.

1.  Cut the green beans into big chunks put into a pot with the carrots add a pinch of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of sugar. Bring to a boil, cook for about 3 minutes
2. Add the frozen veggies during the last-minute of boiling the green beans and carrots.
3. Drain the veggies in a colander, use the drained water to blanch the cabbage for about two minutes and drain. Set aside all the veggies.
4. In a sauce pan heat the oil, add the ginger and garlic, fry for 1 minute.
5. Add the cleaned prawn into the ginger and garlic mixture, add the seasoning cubes and cook until it just starts to turn white.
6. Add all the veggies and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally
7. Mix the soy sauce, oyster sauce, seasoning cubes and the reserved water in a bowl. Sprinkle the corn starch into the mixture and stir very well to mix.
8. Pour the liquid into the prawn and veggies
9. Add salt and cook for another 5 minutes.

Curry Fried Rice with Sweet and Sour Beef

Home …………………….. Happiness

Kids ……………………… Joy

Life ……………………….. Good

Morning alarm ……………. Morning run

Eggs...............................…....Breakfast

Amala ……………………....Shitta

Diet …………………………Coke

Woman …………………….. Awesome

Beautiful ……………………You

Chinese.…….………….……Take out

Ok I wrote all that because I wanted to illustrate that anytime I hear Chinese I simultaneously think takeout. I love Chinese meals “I no go lie”.

It’s an easy meal to make, hardly taking much time to cook except the preparation stage which involves a lot of chopping.

I modified this recipe of fried rice to make it more Nigerian this is achieved by adding curry to the rice. Chinese don’t add curry to their rice.

Ingredients

For the Rice

2 Cups Rice

1 Tbsp Curry powder

1 large Onions, thinly sliced

3 cloves Garlic, sliced

250 g Shrimps

Mixed veggies (carrots, Peas, sweet corn, red and green peppers)

Sugar

Salt

Oil.

For the Sauce

500g beef

2 Tbsp chopped ginger

1 Tbsp chopped garlic

1 tsp chili flakes

2 Tbsp soy sauce

Seasoning

2 Tbsp Sugar

1 Tbsp lime juice

1 tbsp Corn starch

2 cups water

Salt

Oil

Chives for garnishing

1. Boil the rice as you would normally cook it add the curry powder to the rice. Once the rice is done allow it to cool down a bit you can transfer it into a colander to hasten the cooling process. 
2. In a frying pan heat 3 tbsp of oil sauté the onions and the garlic until translucent add the veggies and the shrimp cook until the shrimps turn pinkish white. You can add any cube seasoning of your choice.  Add the boiled rice, sprinkle the sugar on top the rice and keep stirring for about 3 minutes, seasoning with salt. Set the rice aside
   

Green Plantain and Sweet Potato Pottage

Plantain is a stable food item in my home especially with my kids. Recently my husband developed an affinity with green plantain (unripe plantain) he wants it as part of his meal at least twice a week. I get the whole eating healthy stuff and the need to eliminate some high glycemic meals. The only snag is that green plantain has no sugar and is not a sweet meal so getting my kids to eat it is usually a tug of war. Hence the addition of sweet potatoes, which gives it the right amount of sweetness.

Ingredients

7 medium to large size green plantain

1 large sweet potato

1 medium smoked fish

2 tbsp crayfish, dry blended

1 large onion

1/8 cup or1 large cooking spoon palm oil

1 cup shredded ugu about 1 small bunch

Seasoning

Salt to taste

1. Peel the skin of the plantain, it’s easier to hold the plantain vertically. Give it a straight cut from top to bottom then gently use your fingers or the knive to lift off the skin. Cut each plantain into 5 or 6 round pieces. Peel the potato and cut into large chunks about 2 to 3 times larger than the plantains.

2. Wash the peeled plantains and potatoes and place in a pot over medium heat. Add enough water to just cover them do not pour too much to totally cover them some of the vegetables should be sticking out of the water. Too much water would make the pottage watery.

3. Add the sliced onions and palm oil, bring to a boil.

4. Next put the washed dry smoked fish, crayfish and the seasoning

5. Stir at intervals with a wooden spoon this would help to thicken the sauce.

6.       Boil until the plantains are tender and the water is reduced to form a thick sauce by now the potatoes should be tender.

7. I like to add the sliced fresh pepper at this point; I like to see little flakes of pepper.

8. Salt and finally add the ugu and give it one last stir. Turn off the heat after a minute

9. Serve.

Tip: The use of wooden spoon rather than metal to stir helps to keep the bottom of the pot from burning the food