My Guide to Food – Exploring and Mapping intersections between Nigerian Cuisine and Foods of the World
There are some things that are confined to the highways and express ways of Nigerian roads. Certain delicacies you’ll find at Junction towns – a special kind of fried yam and chicken at Saminaka, Bush meat (game to you) and Pounded yam at Ore, Kpokpogari and groundnut at Ughelli. We wait for them with excitement. […]
This is a version of a non-alcoholic drink that we were first introduced to in Dubai – an Apple Mojito. I’ve tried several times to recreate it and it’s only in the last few weeks that I’ve come close to experiencing the delight we enjoyed in December. My first attempts used muddled mint leaves and lime juice. […]
This is a simple but beautiful sauce – one simply takes pureed garden eggs (raw, roasted, fired, smoked) and combines them with shreds of Ugba – fermented oil bean. Ugba has such a beautiful, chewy but crunchy somewhat resistant-to-being-eaten-quickly quality that’s perfect for the slight bitterness and earthiness of the garden eggs. One that makes […]
This is the season when one hears ‘I hate new yam’ with such disdain…and I smile. There is no old yam without new yam. One must thank not only the divine provider(s) of the yam, one must give ultimate thanks to those who get it out of the ground and to our plates – the farmers, […]
The New Yam festival is a harvest festival celebrated across Nigeria and many parts of Africa. When I made Ofe Nsala, my Igbo friends mentioned that this was the perfect soup to feast on in the village square during iwaji/ irijiohuru, which celebrates the start of the harvest season. I think one should praise God, […]
Passion Fruit – beauty and fragrance invoked here. And long overdue this is. I must confess it has all my favourite juices in a glass: the floral acidity of passion fruit the clean refreshment of cucumber juice the sweet of sugar cane and the citrus burst from lime juice. Did I mention the lightness of […]
No, I’m not in Philly. No, the memory of grits isn’t what has shocked me into silence these last few months. Yes, I’ve finally been to a Diner. Yes, my curiosity has been deeply aroused by Guy Fieri and his ‘Diners, Drive-ins and Dives’. No, I haven’t done the other two but you bet I’m […]
Because everyday is World Jollof Rice Day. And so I present you one of two recipes – Asun Jollof- I concocted during the run-up to August 22nd – the other? A smoky prawn version. Step 1 Get goat meat and season it with salt, ground onions and chilies. Step 2 Coal-smoke for the most intense, smoky flavour. […]
…and yes, I’m celebrating the awesomeness of my waffle iron because I’m a global citizen, of America, of Nigeria, of The Netherlands, of The World who will waffle everything possible from bread to waffle batter, cake and croissants. The ancient Greeks are said to have been the first waffle bakers — they cooked flat cakes […]
Hi. My name is Ozoz. I’m a Nigerian food explorer who’s on a quest – to find and share the sweet, sweet nectar that’s food
