Recipe of the day: Meat dishes to pair with your jollof rice

There is an ongoing argument amongst West Africans about who produces the best jollof rice. Ask a Nigerian, Ghanaian, or Senegalese person and they would proudly say they produce the best jollof rice. 

However, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) may have ended this hot debate after they declared in December 2021 that Senegal’s jollof rice was their “intangible cultural heritage of humanity, “Business Ghana reported.

According to the publication jollof rice originated during colonial rule in West Africa from 1860-1940. 

Despite this declaration from UNESCO two years ago, Ghana and Nigeria can submit their jollofs to the organisation to have there’s declared intangible cultural heritage of humanity. 

Whilst the debate, conversations and arguments are likely to continue, these meat dishes will pair up nicely with any plate of jollof rice from any region.  

Meat dishes to go with your jollof rice

Nigerian tomato stew recipe (Obe ata)

Ingredients

• 3 plummed tomatoes
• 2 red bell peppers (aka tatashe pepper)
• 2 scotch bonnets
• 2 onions
• 1-2 tbsp tomato puree
• 3/4 cup of chicken stock
• Salt to taste
• 1-2 chicken stock cubes (knorr)
• 1-2 tsp curry powder (optional)
• 1-2 tsp of thyme
• Precooked assorted meat (beef, chicken, pomo etc)
• Vegetable oil

Instructions

1. Add scotch bonnets, red bell pepper, onions and plummed tomatoes to a blender and blend.
2. Heat enough oil to cover the base of a large saucepan. Add the tomato mix and bring it to a boil. Then add chicken stock cubes, salt, thyme, curry powder, tomato puree and chicken stock. Stir well and leave to cook on medium heat for 10-15 minutes.
3. Finally, add the assorted meat stir well and leave to cook for another 7-10 minutes on low/medium heat.
4. Serve with rice or swallow

This recipe can be found on simshomekitchen.

TO MAKE: Recipe of the day: Chicken, jollof rice and fried plantain

Baked chicken jollof rice 

Ingredients

• 6 chicken thighs or legs
• 2 tsp coriander, divided
• Salt
• 1 tsp White pepper, divided
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil, divided
• 1 small onion finely chopped
• 1 red bell pepper deseeded and chopped
• Scotch bonnet chilli to taste (optional)
• 1 jumbo stock cube , crumbled
• 3.5 tbsp tomato puree
• 400g (14oz) rice
• 925ml (3.9 cups) warm water*

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to fan-assisted 160C / 180C / 350F / gas 4.
2. Season the chicken with half the coriander, salt and half the white pepper and a tsp of oil and set aside.
3. Heat a frying pan with half the oil over medium heat and brown the chicken on all sides. Then remove from the pan and set aside.
4. Add the remaining oil to the pan and fry the onion for about 7 mins until soft.
5. Stir in the scotch bonnet chilli, coriander, pepper, and jumbo cube for a min before mixing in the tomato puree.
6. Add in the rice and mix until well coated before pouring in the warm water before adding in the chicken.
7. Transfer the Jollof rice mixture into a baking dish, cover with some foil and bake in the oven for about 60-65 minutes or until the rice is soft and done.
8. When done take the rice out of the oven, fluff it and serve.

This recipe can be found recipesfrompantry.com.

Senegalese jollof rice and fish

The Fish

• A handful of parsley about a heaping cup
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1 Scotch bonnet/ habanero pepper
• 1 tsp shrimp bouillon
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 2.5  lbs blue snapper fish preferably cut into fish steaks or any white fish of your choice

The Rice

• 2 cups of broken jasmine rice or regular jasmine rice soaking
• 1 sweet potato
• 1 purple eggplant
• 4 carrots I used orange purple and yellow carrots
• 1/2 a head of cabbage
• 2 bell peppers
• 3 scotch bonnet/ habanero peppers
• For the sauce
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup tomato paste
• 1 large onion sliced
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 2 scotch bonnet/ habanero peppers I used green scotch bonnets, the colour doesn’t really matter
• 3 tbsp shrimp bouillon
• 1 tsp black pepper
• Salt to taste

Instructions

Marinating the Fish

1. With a mortar and pistol or in a food processor, grind the parsley, garlic, scotch bonnet, bullion black pepper and salt into a rough paste.
2. Poke two holes into the flesh of the fish and stuff them with the parsley mix.
3. Broil or Fry the fish until it is golden brown on each side, and set aside for the sauce.

How to Cook the Rice

1. In a mortar and with a pestle or in a food processor grind the scotch bonnet peppers and garlic into a rough paste).
2. Saute the sliced onions in the oil over medium heat until translucent.
3. Add in the tomato paste, and stir fry for 5 minutes. The tomato paste may start to brown a little.
4. Add in the ground garlic and scotch bonnet and stir fry for another 2 minutes.
5. Add in bullion, black pepper, and 8 cups of water. At this stage, taste the sauce for salt, and adjust to your preference.
6. Add the tough vegetable first into the sauce and cook until tender. In this case, add in the sweet potatoes, cook until tender and remove, then the carrots, cook until tender and remove. Continue adding in the vegetables until all the vegetables are cooked.
7. Set the cooked vegetables aside and then add in the fish and cook in the sauce for 2-5 minutes.
8. Once the fish has simmered in the sauce for 2-5 minutes, gently remove it from the sauce.
9. At this point, drain the rice that has been cooking and pour it into the sauce. The sauce should just cover the rice. Adjust the amount of water at this stage if needed to make sure that the rice is just covered.
10. Cover the pot and simmer on low-medium heat for 15-20 minutes. You may seal the cover of the pot with foil to prevent steam from escaping.
11. At the 15-minute mark, check that the rice has absorbed the moisture and is soft. Cover and cook for another 5 minutes if it needs more time. If the water has dried up and the rice is still not soft, add in 4 tbsp of water, cover and allow to cook.
12. Serve hot with the vegetables and fish, and lime wedges.

This recipe can be found on yummymedley.com.