Nigerian Jollof Rice Recipe
From Reader, Tina Afeno | Baton Rouge, Louisiana
I am blessed to be married for three years now, to my elementary school crush and sweetheart for many years! We have a sweet little son, Lael (15months old) with the heart of a 25yr old!
I was born in Nigeria and lived there till I was 16years before moving to the U.S and learned to cook Jollof Rice when I was in Nigeria! I could eat rice every day; 3 times a day if I had to pick one meal to live on :D. We ate jollof rice for dinner and/or lunch at least once a week growing up. Jollof rice is generally served in homes for lunch or dinner, as well as at celebrations and at practically every special occasion like birthday parties, weddings, etc in Nigeria.
When I was in high school, I took a Food & Nutrition class, and I fell more in love with baking and cooking. We had lab classes we called "practicals" where we "practiced" all that we learned in the classroom, and then we had "practical exams" and we got tested, and graded on meal planning, timeliness, and of course execution, and the end product (taste and presentation)!! We were like little chefs! I had my mom teach me a lot of her recipes that I enjoyed most during that time, and I made them for my practical exams. I have enjoyed cooking those recipes since then; and now, I enjoy cooking those recipes and sharing those meals with my family and friends!
To all the beautiful people out there reading this, I hope you're brave enough :) to explore this Nigerian recipe and I hope you enjoy eating it as much as I do!! Enjoy and share with your family and friends :)
-Tina
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 50 minutes
Ingredients —
4 cups per-boiled rice
8 Roma tomatoes
1 habanero pepper (if you like spicy :)) ; substitute for red bell pepper for less spicy
1 onion
1/2 cup tomato paste
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
2-3 bouillon cubes
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup oil
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ginger powder
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
2 bay leaves
5 cups of chicken broth (I usually save mine from homemade cooked chicken)
Instructions —
Roughly cut up then blend together the fresh tomatoes, onion, and habanero pepper.
Heat up oil and sauté some chopped onions in the oil for about 2 minutes.
Gently add the blended tomato sauce and stir, then add tomato paste and stir till it is evenly blended in and let sit for about 3-5 minutes.
Add the curry, and thyme, garlic powder, ginger powder, and salt, then stir and let sit for another 5 minutes.
Next, add in 5 cups of chicken broth, the bay leaves, 2 bouillon cubes, and salt to taste, then stir well.
Wash the rice with clean water to rinse off excess starch, and then add to the pot. Stir well, then carefully wrap the top of the pot with aluminum foil before covering with the lid of the pot.
Let it cook on medium heat for about 30 minutes until the rice absorbs all the liquid and is soft.
When the rice is done, you might still see concentrates of tomato sauce over the rice. This is very normal. Gently stir the rice with a wooden spoon.
Serve warm with Entree of choice (chicken, beef, fish, etc), as well as a vegetable side like salad, coleslaw, or any other options.
Recipe Notes
To make your Jollof Rice tastier, you have the option of adding 3 tablespoons of butter once it is done, and stir it in the rice to melt.
Jollof Rice might burn at the bottom of the pan when you cook it. That is perfectly okay, and it lends a yummy smokey flavor to the meal!
Also, you can garnish your Jollof rice with carrots and peas before serving if you wish.
Most Nigerian recipes have several variations, you can definitely add your twist of seasonings or vegetables.
Enjoy!!!!!!!!!! 💕
Tina,
WOW!
This rice looks as beautiful as it does delicious! Thank you for sharing your personal story and this wonderful recipe. I am very anxious to prepare it for my family. I enjoyed reading about your love story - with your elementary school crush and seeing the beautiful photo of you with your adorable son. What a great smile! From both of you!! Thank you and give sweet Lael a hug from me.
-Tina
