Jollof rice
Rice cooked in a blended tomato and red pepper sauce with scotch bonnet, thyme and curry powder until the bottom catches and smokes. West Africa's icon.
Photo : Segun Famisa · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 50 min
- Total
- 70 min
- Serves
- 6
- Difficulty
- Medium
Method
- Blend the tomatoes, peppers, chilli and one onion to a smooth purée. You should have about 700 ml of sauce.
- Heat the oil in a large heavy-based pot and brown the sliced onion for 5 minutes. Add the tomato purée and fry it for 3 minutes, stirring, to cook out its sharpness.
- Pour in the blended vegetables, add the thyme, curry powder, bay leaves, salt and pepper. Reduce uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes until the sauce thickens and the oil rises to the surface.
- Rinse the rice until the water runs clear, then add it to the sauce with the stock. Stir once and taste the liquid; it should be well seasoned.
- Cover with foil and then the lid, and cook on the lowest heat for 25 to 30 minutes without lifting the lid.
- Check the rice. If it is still firm, add a splash of hot water and give it another 5 to 10 minutes. Let the bottom catch slightly for the prized smoky flavour.
- Fluff with a fork, remove the bay leaves and serve with fried plantain and a salad.
Jollof is the subject of a passionate rivalry between Nigeria and Ghana. The Nigerian version uses parboiled rice and chases that slightly caramelised, smoky bottom known as “party jollof”.
