Try this jollof rice method the Nigerian way.

Yesterday was a rest day for me so I decided to make a meal for the family but then I was too ill to do anything afterwards, I just went back to bed only to wake up this morning.Hmmmm.

I made an African dish called Jollof Rice, this delicacy is known to be African specialty and it requires nothing but few ingredient and utmost dedication from the cook to turn out well. In Nigeria where I am from, we categorised our Jollof Rice into 2: either we say party jollof or normal jollof. Party jollof symply means outdoor jollof rice cooked with the intentionfor a large crowd with wood and big iron pot, this wood infuse its own special smell into the rice and from the burns generated by the use of a big iron pot, it resulted into the party jollof. People believe this party jollof rice has a different smell and tatse from the ones cooked into private homes. While the other Jollofrice is a normal one cooked in the private homes of individuals.

So we developed a style of cooking this party jollof rice without the intricacies of the whole circus of big pot and all by making sure there is a small burn before switching off the gas after the jollof rice is done. It will end up smelling and tasting like the party jollof it is intended and do not forget to make sure all ingredients are completely added.

So to get started I made sure I had my ingredient available which are:

• Rice (I prefer long grain)
• Tomato paste
• Blended pepper ( mixture of tomato,red bell pepper,scotch bonnet)
• Garlic and Ginger
• Chicken Stock (water gotten from pre cooking your chicken)
• Maggi, curry, thyme
• Onions (sliced)
• Salt to taste
• Vegetable oil or soya beans oil

How to cook
So first I poured my vegetable oil into my pot and place it on the gas burner to fry a bit before pouring in my sliced onions. After the onion fried a bit, I poured in my grated ginger and garlic because I dont really like the smell of it too much but love the smell it adds to my jollof rice. After frying this a bit, my tomato paste went in next and here i kept a slow fire for it to fry very well until the oil was floating on it.

In then goes my blended pepper and left for extra minute to cook and fry. When I noticed my oil was floating on this mixture, I then added my spices like curry, thyme, maggi and salt for tasting. I then pour in my meat stock to serve as my first water to cook my rice. P.s in a situation whereby your chicken stock is plenty, you do not need water to cook your jollof, the chicken stock is enough for you.

I then moved to the stage of washing my rice very well because they are prone to be starchy and went ahead to pour it in and mixed all together with my turning stick for easy infusion of ingredients. I then left it alone to simmer with slow fire befote pouring in additional water. In this instance my chicken stock wasn't much so I added water to cook to finish.

When my water was dried off from the pot of rice and was close to burning, I slowed my gas burner for the party jollof effect, not too much burn cos I cant scrub pot after cooking. Violaaaa my jollof rice is done.

My picture quality was really terrible because I forgot to turn the kitchen light on and my phone flash..but manage it heheh....I also used pic collage to merge all images together in other to ease the stress of posting one after the other.