Jollof Rice, a classic Nigerian rice dish flavoured with tomatoes, peppers and lots of seasonings! Today I am going to be sharing with you how to make it in just five(5) easy steps.
Jollof rice is a West African dish originated from the people of Wolof in Senegal and Gambia.
It’s a staple in most households and at parties where you are rest assured there will be pans and pans of it. There are many different ways to cook Jollof Rice. It is a dish made with rice, tomatoes, tomato paste, onions, scotch bonnet peppers, salt and spices. If it doesn’t have the above mentioned ingredients, then it is not true Jollof. It can be served with chicken, salad, and fried plantains. Enjoy!
INGREDIENTS:
5 medium sized tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 red bell pepper, roughly chopped
1 medium sized onion, roughly chopped, set aside
2 scotch bonnet peppers (habanero peppers as they are sometimes called)
1/4 cup of groundnut oil
3 table spoon tomato paste
2 cups of parboiled rice
2 1/2 cups of chicken stock
1 table spoon salt to taste
1/2 table spoon curry powder
1/2 table spoon thyme
1 table spoon All purpose seasoning
1 Knorr stock cube
3 bay leaves
Water, as needed
INSTRUCTIONS
Blend your tomatoes, red pepper, scotch bonnet peppers in a food processor or blender for about 45 seconds, make sure that everything is blended well.
In a medium sized pot, heat your oil on medium-high heat. Once the oil is heated add the onions you set aside and fry just until they turn golden brown. Once the onions, have turned brown in color add the tomato paste and fry for 2-3 minutes. Then add the blended tomato mixture (reserve about 1/4 cup and set aside) and fry the mixture with the onions and tomato paste for about 30 minutes. Make sure you stir consistently so that the tomato mixture does not burn.
After 30 minutes, turn the heat down to medium, and add the chicken stock. Mix and add your seasonings (salt, curry powder, thyme, all purpose seasoning, and the Knorr stock cube). Continue to boil for 10 minutes.
Add the parboiled rice to the pot. Mix it very well with the tomato stew. At this point if you need to add water so that the rice is level with the tomato mixture/chicken stock go ahead and do so. Add the bay leaves, cover the pot, and cook on medium to low heat for 15-30 minutes.
When the liquid has almost dried up add the remaining tomato stew, cover, and let it cook for another 5-10 minutes. Heat until the liquid has completely dried up. Turn off the heat, mix thoroughly, and your Jollof Rice is ready to be eaten!
Note: It is key to use parboiled rice so that you don’t end up with mushy rice in the end. When cooking the tomato stew, you can tell when it is done because the oil will rise to the top. Also another way to tell that is done is when the bitter taste of the tomatoes has been cooked out.**The reason why you reserve 1/4th of the tomato mixture and add it at the end is because we do not want the rice to burn. Also, it gives the rice that beautiful red color we all know and love.
AASA PRESS UI 