Category: Main dishes

Main dishes

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Alloco & shrimp omelette

 

Alloco & shrimp omelette

  • Ripe plantains
  • 2 tablespoons oil (or more canola or vegetable oil for frying)
  • 20 shrimps (shelled)
  • 2 to matoes
  • 1 onions
  • Pepper
  • 7 eggs
  • 1/4 cup oil
  • 1 tablespoon garlic
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 cube
  1. Peeled and cut diagonally or round, into 1/4-inch-thick slices
  2. Add salt to the plantain
  3. Add oil into a nonstick skillet and place it on medium heat.
  4. When the oil begins to shimmer but not smoke, add plantains (work in batches) and fry for 1 1/2 minutes on one side, flip and cook for 1 minute on the other side.
  5. Remove plantains from pan and drain on paper towels.
  6. Continue frying in batches until all the plantains are fried.
  7. Slice the tomato, onion and pepper
  8. Beat the eggs. Beat very well and for a long time.
  9. In a saucepan on medium heat, add the oil and the onion.
  10. Cook for a min and add the shrimp and garlic
  11. Then add in the tomato, cube and the egg. Mix everything very well.
  12. When the bottom (of the omelette) is starting to set, push the eggs around with a spatula. Keep pushing all the eggs while cooking, until all the eggs and shrimps are cooked.
  13. Simple, fast, easy, yummy!

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Alloco and Tomato stew

 

Alloco and Tomato stew

For alloco

  • 3 ripe plantains
  • A little salt
  • Oil for frying

For the tomato stew:

  • 3 peppers
  • ½ of an onion (finely chopped)
  • 2 cloves of garlic (finely chopped)
  • 1 teaspoon of concentrated tomato
  • 2 to matoes
  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • ½ cubic broth (Maggi, optional)
  • Salt and pepper
  • ½ cup of water
  1. Peel and cut the plantains in cubes.
  2. Then salt the bananas.
  3. Heat the oil in a large skillet and fry the plantain until each side is golden brown.
  4. Remove and place them in a paper towel to absorb the excess oil.

The tomato stew:

  1. Heat the oil just a little and add the sliced the onion.
  2. Add the concentrated tomato
  3. Add the tomato puree and garlic
  4. Add the cube, chicken and a pinch of baking soda
  5. Cook for 10 minutes over low heat.
  6. Now serve your fried bananas with the tomato stew.
  7. Enjoy your meal!

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Jollof rice with Whole Fried Chicken

This is one of my mom’s recipes and it was inspired by the Senegalese Thiébou guinar. But this is not Thiébou guinar because it does not have 2 keys ingredients (guedj and yet). The jollof rice is enjoyed in Togo, Benin, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Ghana, and Nigeria… This recipe is perfect for the parties and will allow you to impress your guest easily. The condiments are blended and then fried in peanut oil. Then we wet with water depending on the amount of rice to cook and the desired appearance for rice. The rice is cooked in this sauce, which gives it a specific color according to the quantity and type of tomato used (concentrated and fresh) with the vegetables of your choice. In this recipe, I used broken rice but jasmine or basmati rice is just perfect for this recipe. The rice is then served with vegetables and chicken.

Jollof rice with Whole Fried Chicken

  • 2 chicken (8 cloves garlic, 2 tablespoons ginger, bay leaf, 1 teaspoon pepper)
  • 4 tbsp tomato paste
  • 2 cubes
  • 3 large fresh tomatoes
  • 1 big onions
  • A red pepper
  • 3 large glasses of rice
  • 1/4 cup of oil (optional)
  • 3 carrots
  • 1 Cabbage
  • A pinch of bicarbonate
  • Green pepper
  1. Wash the rice and put in a colander
  2. Clean the chicken and marinate with the spices, cube and salted to taste. Cook for 1 hour (30 minutes on each side) – Add enough water to cover the chicken at all time.
  3. Once chicken is cooked, remove broth and set aside
  4. Add 3 tomatoes, crushed onion, tomato paste and a pinch of baking soda and salt to taste. Cook for 5 minutes.
  5. Add vegetables, 4 cup water and bring to a boil. (Adjust the seasoning with cube and salt). Simmer pendant 15 min
  6. Using a perforated spoonful remove the vegetables
  7. Add chilli and rice and stir and cook over medium heat. As soon as there is more water evaporates cover with a plastic bag then the lid of the maronite. And reduce the fire.
  8. The grains of rice are peeled off each other when cooked
  9. Fry the chicken
  10. Serve hot in a large bowl with the vegetables and chicken; and crushed green pepper

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Attiéké with fish and alloco

Attiéké

Attiéké is a cassava side dish from the Ivory Coast cuisine. The dish is prepared from fermented cassava pulp that has been grated or granulated with a texture similar to that of couscous. In Ghana Attiéké is known as Akyeke. Attiéké is used with fish, Alloco, chicken, Kedjenou … Variant of Attiéké The Abgodjama is Attiéké whose grains are different from others in their sizes. The grains are large in size and this Attiéké generally made to be eaten by the lagoon people themselves is made from a variety of superior quality cassava. It is more expensive than other varieties and is often difficult to obtain. Attiéké petit grain is for trade and has relatively smaller grains than Abgodjama. This is the standard of Attiéké, this variety is available on the markets in large quantities and at low cost The Garba is composed of Attiéké (cassava semolina) and fried pieces of tuna accompanied by chopped fresh peppers and, depending on the variant, tomato and onion, all raised by a seasoning cube.

  • 3 cup dry Attiéké
  • 2 tablespoons of oil
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • ¼ onion
  • 1/3 cup water
  • 4 fishes
  • 1 onion (1/2 sliced)
  • 1 tablespoon ginger
  • 2 ~5 cloves
  • 2 ~5 whole all spice
  • 2 tablespoon garlic
  • 1 cube
  • Salt to taste
  • 3-4 large ripe plantains
  • 1 onion
  • 2 tablespoons oil
  • 4 to matoes
  • 4 pepper
  • 1 salt according to your taste
  • 1 tablespoon cube

  1. Pour the dry Attiéké into a container,



  2. Add the water, oil, chopped onion and stir gently.

  3. Cover and let rest 5 to 8 minutes.
  4. Cook with steam 4 to 5 minutes while stirring , so that the grains do not attach, or steam for 3 to 4 minutes .

  5. Attiéké, which is eaten warm, is ready to be served.

  6. Make 2 incisions on each side of the fish

  7. Cover the fish with that mixture (onion, ginger, cloves, whole all spice, garlic, cube, Salt to taste) and fry until golden



  8. Peel the plantain, and cut in cubes



  9. Fried the plantain until golden brown

  10. Cut the onion in half, mince very finely and set aside in a bowl

  11. Cut the tomatoes in half and slice very thinly

  12. On a medium heat , in a saucepan, heat the oil and add the onion.Cook for 10 mins

  13. Add tomatoes, cube taste and add salt if necessary.

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Senegalese Thiéboudienne

 

Senegalese Thiéboudienne

Thiéboudiène, Thiéboudienne, tieb bou dien, tieb, chèp or ceebu jën? Senegalese or Malian? I’m not sure, but I know it’s one of the most delicious dishes in Africa. This wolof rice with fish is the national dish of Senegal. In Mali, for example, it is a dish called zamè. Thiéboudienne comes from Wolof “Rice” (ceeb) and “fish” (jën). Thiéboudienne is made with rice, fish, tomato sauce, and vegetables (cabbage, carrot, cassava, eggplant, onion …).

  • 1 thiof (or 2 seabreams)
  • 2 onions
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 3 carrots
  • 1/2 white cabbage
  • 1 cassava tuber
  • 1 African eggplant
  • 1 pepper lantern
  • 1 piece of guedjef and yete for connoisseurs (dried fish and shellfish)
  • 1 bunch of parsley
  • 2 kg rice (if possible broken 2 times)
  • 2 cubes of broth
  • 1 can of tomato paste
  • 3 to matoes puree
  • 1 cup oil
  • 5 okra
  • Salt pepper
  1. Prepare the stuffing (Roff): Finely chop the parsley, garlic and onion, 1 cube; add chilli to make a more tasty stuffing.
  2. Put the stuffing into the fish and fry; then Fry.
  3. In a large pot, fry the remaining onion and add tomato paste, 3 tomatoes puree . Leave to cook on low heat 2 min. Add the water.
  4. Add the vegetable, the fish and the remaining Roff to the pot and cover with water.
  5. Add the maggi cubes, salt and chill, being careful not to burst it and remove the tail.

  6. Set aside for at least 45 minutes.

  7. Meanwhile, rinse the rice and put it in a couscous pot. Preheat the rice with steam.
  8. Remove the fish and vegetables.
  9. Make the nokoss and add to the rice.
  10. Cook the Tiep over medium heat until the rice is cooked through.
  11. Stir in the cooked leaves with chilli and a little maggi and add a little sauce taken from the pot.
  12. To serve your Tiep bou dienn:
  13. Put the rice in a large dish and place the ingredients in the center; decorate with lemon wedges and parsley.
  14. Enjoy your meal!!

 

 

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Red Pinon (Gari Éba)

Pinon rouge

Gari is made from the roots of cassava, the gari is in the form of fine, white and crisp semolina.

  • 1/4 cup oil
  • 1/4 onion sliced
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 2 to mato puree
  • 1 cube
  • 1 teaspoon garlic and ginger
  • chilli pepper to taste
  • Chicken stock
  • Gari
  1. On a medium heat, in a sauce pan and add the oil and onion.
  2. A the paste tomato, tomato, spices, cube, chilli and stock
  3. Add the gari the hot broth gradually stirring vigorously until obtaining a homogeneous paste (Pinon),
  4. Arrange the pieces of meat on the Pinon, basting with a little cooking oil.
  5. Serve hot.

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Akpan – Ogi

Traditionally processed Ogi is the type of Fufu made with fermented cornstarch with the distinctive sour taste. Unfortunately, for those who live overseas, fermented corn is not easy to get. Therefore I use a powder of fermented cornstarch sold in most African stores. Ogi is simple yet very difficult to prepare with the powdered Ogi flour.

Akpan – Ogi

Akpan is a fermented cereal pudding typically made from maize. Traditionally, the grains are soaked in water for up to three days, before wet milling and sieving to remove husks. The filtered cereal is then allowed to ferment for up to three days until sour.

  • 1 cup Fermented cornflour
  • 1 cup cold water
  • 3 cup hot water
  1. Mix the cold water and the cornflour. Mix well until lump free.

  2. Pour the cornflour into the boiling water.

  3. cook for 5 mins or until thickened

  4. Serve with Yebessessi, Adokougbi, braised fish…

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Baked Piroshki (Stuffed bread)

 

BAKED PIROZHKI (Stuffed bread)

Baked Not Fried! A Classic Russian Meat Pie Stuffed with Ground Beef. Classic Oven Baked Pirozhki (Пирожки в духовке с мясом)

Ingredients for dough using a bread maker

  • 1 cup milk lukewarm
  • 2 eggs set aside 1 yolk for egg wash with 1 teaspoon whipping cream
  • 3 tablespoons oil – using 15ml measure – melted butter is better
  • 3 1/3 cups of flour
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 2 teaspoons yeast – slightly less than a packet

Ingredients for meat filling

  • 500 g lean ground beef
  • 1 onion chopped finely
  • 1 tablespoon parsley
  • 1 tablespoon garlic
  • 1 tablespoon ginger
  • 1 cube
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt as per your taste
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  1. Mix all the ingredients for the dough together. Let it rise for 2 hours.
  2. Mix together the ground meat, onion, parsley, garlic, ginger
  3. In a frying pan, over medium high heat, the ground beef until cooked and evenly browned. Add cube, salt and pepper, taste and adjust if necessary and set aside to cool before adding to the dough.
  4. Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F
  5. When the dough is ready, carefully place onto a very lightly floured surface. Roll out the dough into a long sausage shape. You want to cut into pieces that are approx. the size of a golf ball. Or you can pinch off golf ball pieces from the dough. You should get at least 24 pieces from this recipe. Cover pieces you aren’t working on with cling wrap so they don’t dry out.
  6. Roll out the dough balls as thin as you can into the shape of an oval. Place about 1 tablespoon of the filling in the centre. Pinch both sides of the edges of the dough together, creating a seal all around. Don’t allow the filling to touch the edges or the seal will come apart.
  7. Place the piroshki on parchment paper, or a lightly greased baking tray, upside down, so you cannot see the pinched seal, and flatten them a bit. Don’t allow them to touch each other, as they will stick together.
  8. Make the egg wash by beating the egg yolk with 1 teaspoon of whipping cream and brush the piroshki with the egg wash before putting into the oven.
  9. Place into the oven and bake until golden brown, about 25 minutes.

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Suya Sandwich

Bread-skewers or Suya Sandwich

I feel like Suya (also called Tchintchinga) is universal. Unless, you are allergic to peanut, why wouldn’t love Suya? I think the Suya stand can be reference as a West African fast food stand. Suya is a meat skewer seasoned with roasted peanut and other spices. The Suya is a staple food in West Africa that originated from the Ayoussa culture. The suya can be made with beef which is the most common, lamb, chicken and even Kidney, liver and tripe which is sold in newspapers.

It can also be served with Jollof rice, Fried plantains, Akpan, Fried yam. For this recipe I used thinly slice beef marinated with powdered roasted peanut, garlic, ginger, paprika, salt… vegetable oil and I served it with some French baguette. And it is a marriage made in heaven the combination of roasted beef, the peanut, the spices and the French baguette make the perfect sandwich.

I drive 3 hours round trip to get my French baguette from Cait and Abby’s in South Orange NJ. If you cannot get your hand on some fresh French baguette for this sandwich, you can substitute the French baguette with some toasted white or Panini bread. Bush the crispy bread with oil before adding the Suya.  Furthermore you can dust the meat with the Suya spice. Unfortunately, because of my kids, I did not add any hot peppers (like cayenne pepper).

Suya sandwich

  • 3 teaspoons finely ground roasted peanuts
  • 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper or 1 teaspoon red peppers or 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 ⁄2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1 ⁄2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 ⁄2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 cube
  • 1/2 kg beef (cut into bite-sized pieces (beef, chicken, etc.))
  • 1 red onion (peeled and cut into chunks (optional))
  • 1/4 cup oil
  1. Stir the spices together , mixing well.
  2. Slice the onion
  3. Dip and roll the meat in the other bowl of the peanut-spice mix, making sure the meat is completely coated.
  4. Place the meat on skewers
  5. Brush with some oil and add more suya spice
  6. Broil in a hot oven, or grill over hot coals, until meat is done.
  7. Slice the bread in half
  8. Add some oil, suya spice and the suya
  9. Serve immediately with the reserved peanut-spice mix, for sprinkling or dipping as desired.

(Do not use the mix that came into contact with the raw meat.).

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CHICKEN TAGINE WITH POTATOES AND PEAS

CHICKEN TAGINE WITH POTATOES AND PEAS

Easy tanginess recipe!

CHICKEN TAGINE WITH POTATOES AND PEAS

  • 6 chicken breasts
  • 2 onions (thinly sliced)
  • 2 garlic cloves (minced)
  • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 saffron threads
  • 1/4 teaspoon cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt (to taste)
  • 1/4 cup parsley (finely chopped)
  • 1/4 cup cilantro (finely chopped)
  • 4 cup potatoes (diced bite-size)
  • 2 cup green peas
  1. In a large flameproof casserole, combine chicken, onions, garlic, oil, saffron, cumin, ginger pepper, paprika & salt, then cover with water, about 2 cups. Over medium-high heat, bring to a boil & cook, covered, for 30 minutes.
  2. Add parsley, cilantro & potatoes, then cook, covered, another 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are nearly done.
  3. Add peas, lower the heat & simmer for 5 minutes more.
  4. If sauce is still runny, uncover the pan & boil hard until thickened, then taste & adjust seasoning, if necessary, before transferring to a preheated serving dish ~ Serve very hot with a good bread!