Egg Plant With Gizzard in Tomato Sauce

This was one of our no-carbs dinner nights. I replaced the carb with aubergine, also known as egg plant and boiled it  for a few minutes in the back. Gizzard is like a delicacy to me, I just love it and can munch on a it all day when well cooked and spicy :)

Depending on the size of the egg plant, one or two should be enough. Wash thoroughly to avoid sand or any debris and cut into pieces of your choice. Put in a pot with just enough water to cover the pieces, add a pinch of salt and boil for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and drain immediately.



GIZZARD IN TOMATO SAUCE

Ingredients - store bought gizzards, vegetable oil, onions, tomatoes, pepper - all chopped, 1 maggi cube and salt to taste.

1. Put 2 teaspoons of oil in a sauce pan, and heat till lightly smoking.
2. Add the washed small pack of gizzards, the maggi cube and salt.
3. Saute on low heat for 15mins, stirring intermittently.
4. Add the chopped onions, tomatoes and pepper and keep stirring for another 10 mins.
5. Check that the seasoning is enough, and add more if necessary.
6. Remove from heat once it starts to simmer.

Fried Plantain With Tomato Stew and Chicken

Fried plantain is also called Dodo in Nigeria. The usually ripe plantain is cut in slices, diced or chopped and deep fried in oil till it is done, about 8 - 10 mins on medium heat. We don't often eat fried food, I know it's not too good for you as one gets older, but once in a while you just want to chill and eat some foods of your childhood or simply have the variety available. I also enjoy unripe plantain, boiled or cooked, see recipes here and here, or ripe baked plantain here.

Someone moaned on my Lasagna post about how much calories the meal must have, and I responded by saying that for me, when it comes to healthy eating, I can't count calories. Generally, I'm more spontaneous than methodical and so choosing what to eat, when, and how much, is easier for me than being so detailed on each meal, or cutting out some meals entirely. I promise though, after this, I'll post some healthy eating, salads and stuff, LOL...

BTW, I do not deep fry my dodo, I use just enough oil to cover the bottom of the fry pan. I use medium heat and turn over the plantain a couple of times.

How to Make Lasagna with White Sauce

Lasagna is one of the more complicated meals I prepare, and one which I'm still learning each time I cook it. Generally, I always make the white sauce myself, but sometimes I just buy Alfredo sauce from the store. This particular recipe with eggs and mozarella cheese is the best of my aresenal.

Ingredients

8 sheets of lasagna pasta
250g of lean ground beef
1 meduim sized white onions diced
2 cloves of garlic - chopped
1 tin of tomatoes sauce
Salt
Nutmeg
Garlic pepper
Spices
Mixed Vegetables

How to Make Nsala Soup - also called White Soup

Ofe Nsala is one of the soups I believe that is native to Asaba, it is also prepared in other parts of Nigeria and called White soup in general because most times, it is cooked without palm oil. The pale greenish color comes from the utazizi leaf and maybe some of the spices.

Nsala is sometimes made for new mothers, and should be usually liquid enough to be sipped from a spoon, but some also prefer the thicker version. There are probably as many recipes for cooking Nsala as there are people who have ever cooked it, but this is just my simple recipe.

Ingredients

5 pounds of your choice of meat, here I use Chicken Drunsticks
6 Cafish Filets
1 medium onion, chopped
1 large tomato, diced in large pieces
2 tablespoons of ground crayfish
3 teaspoons of ground pepper
2 cubes of maggi chicken
2 tablespoons of ground dry Utazizi or Utazi
3 teaspoons of Nsala spices mixture
5 Ladle spoons of poundo yam powder for thickening
Salt to taste

Savory Fried Potato with Chili and Sausage

I have a confession to make about these food blogs, and maybe you can guess. I didn't realize till Atala read some of it and demanded an apology. The truth is that we make most of the dishes together, and sometimes, like in this case, he makes a major part of the meal.

For this dish, we already had the chili [see recipe] but because he wanted some carbs, he fried the diced potatoes. BTW, the potatoes came pre-cut and frozen. Still he fried  them to perfection, and with the sausages and chili, they were very yummy :)

Good for any meal of the day, breakfast, lunch or dinner. Enjoy!

How to Make Chili Con Carne with Vegetables

See this other recipe too for thick chili

Ingredients:

1 pack of 85% ground beef
2 packs of kidney beans, rinsed and drained
3 ladlefuls of vegetable oil
2 large tins of tomato puree
5 medium sized fresh tomatoes, chopped
2 large chopped onions
1 tablespoon dried garlic or to taste
1 tablespoon dried ground cumin or to taste
1 tablespoon dried oregano or to taste
2 tablespoons chili powder or to taste
1 pack of frozen mixed vegetables with carrrots, sweet corn, peas, string beans, etc...
Salt and other spices to taste

Plantain Porridge with Shrimp and Spinach

I love unripe plantain and cook with it more than the ripe one because I tend to stay away from fried foods and ripe ones mostly lend themselves to dodo. Like I said in this plantain with Afang soup post, the sugary sweet taste of ripe plantain means they don't play too nice with most sauces, in my opinion anyway.

For this meal, you cook it just the way you would yam porridge, or is it pottage?

Ingredients

3 Fingers of unripe plantain
2 tablespoons of palm oil
1 pack of frozen shrimp
Four medium sized tomatoes, blended
Half a medium sized onion, blended
1 tablespoon of ground dry crayfish
Ground pepper,
Salt and other condiments to taste.

Who Knows Where I Can Find Icheku Fruit?

It looks like a black valentine bouquet but it's just a bunch of a fruit I loved and would gorge on sometimes while still in Nigeria. I want some now! LOL...

Happy weekend people. Let's shake off and have some fun. This is called Icheku in Igbo, what is it called in your Nigerian or African language? Is there an English or botanical name? Most importantly, where can I find some to buy outside Nigeria, specifically in the USA North-west?

Triple Chocolate Meltdown - A Sweet Treat

This is a short post. The Triple Chocolate Meltdown desert is my weakness whenever we go out to eat. Once I see it on the menu, dinner looks even better and what I'm having for my sweet treat afterwards is settled. Doesn't it make you want to lick the screen? :)

Coconut Flakes Frosted Cake

In the sweetness of Valentine's Day, I'll be sharing a couple of the naughtiness I get up to in the food department. As much as one tries to eat healthily, sometimes you just relax and enjoy. Before I go too far, let me clearly state that I did not make this cake. It was bought from Whole Foods by a friend for Atala's birthday which was last week.

I think I've had coconut cake before but I don't think I've tasted one as good as this, it was extra awesome. What made it stand out even more was that the frosting was completely made from coconut flakes, I loved it as did Atala and it was gone the next day :)

How to Cook Thick Chili Con Carne - Serve with Pap

Chili is what we call beans porridge in Nigeria, beans stewed in oil, tomatoes, pepper and other condiments. Chili Con Carne is when you add meat to the equation, in this instance minced beef. There are various ways to cook this, as usual, but mostly kidney beans are used more than black-eyed beans. The way I cook this one, you'll have a thick outcome, best served with pap.

Ingredients:

1 pack of 85% ground beef
2 packs of kidney beans, rinsed and drained
3 ladlefuls of vegetable oil
2 large tins of tomato puree
5 medium sized fresh tomatoes, chopped
2 large chopped onions
1 tablespoon dried garlic or to taste
1 tablespoon dried ground cumin or to taste
1 tablespoon dried oregano or to taste
2 tablespoons chili powder or to taste
Salt and other mixed spices to taste

Egg Noodles Pasta with Fish and Mushroom Sauce

Pasta is a quick and simple side dish, and it offers loads of variety in the different forms it comes in. There's Penne, Macaroni, Spaghetti, and some even come in rainbow colors. I love all the types and usually have a selection available. For today's menu idea, it is simple boiled Egg Noodles Pasta and Fish and Mushroom Sauce.

PASTA

1. Boil water in a large pot until it is in a roiling boil.
2. Put in a little salt for more flavor and a drop of oil. The oil helps the pasta not to stick to each other and the water not to boil over the pot.
3. Add your pack of egg Noodles pasta and stir immediately
4. Leave the pot open and stir every now and then.
5. There is usually cooking directions on the pasta package, but bite one after about 10 mins and remove from heat when you like the texture.
6. Strain immediately and if you want, run cold water over it. I'd rather eat like that.

How to Cook Fried Rice 1

Fried Rice may not be as ubiquitous as Jollof is in Nigerian households but it has its own place which is somehow classier, it is used for special occasions and parties. In prep terms, fried rice is barely cooked rice stir-fried into a vegetable and meat/seafood  mixture. For each making, even for myself, the ingredients and the method of preparation differs. On this occasion, I used diced cooked beef as the meat accompaniment to the chopped vegetables.

Ingredients
3 cups of long-grain rice
1 pack of Chicken drumsticks
3 ladles vegetable oil
1 pack of frozen mixed vegetable - defrosted
Cooked Beef - diced
2 small fresh tomatoes, chopped
1 medium size onion, chopped
2 Teaspoon of dry pepper
4 Knorr Chicken cubes
Salt and Spices to Taste

Menu Ideas - How to Make Amala, eat with Ogbono

I've blogged about how I prepare my ogbono soup with Okro and this is a continuation. Most Nigerian soups are eaten with a variety of foo-foo, from poundo yam, cassava, amala, and eba. Some have added blended oatmeal to the list as well as mash potatoes. Today's menu idea is using amala, which is dried yam flour, also called Elubo by Atala. The preparation is simple;

Ingredients

Elubo
Water

Directions

1. In a medium sized pot, bring the water to a slow boil. Also heat some water in an electric kettle, or set aside some of the boiling water in a cup.
2. Add the Elubo flour to the water in the pot, and stir.
3. If it is thick, add some boiled water from the kettle. If too soft, add some more elubo.
4. Continue to stir until you get your desired consistency, it should ideally be smooth in texture without lumps.

How to Make Beef in Celery and Mushroom Sauce

Theis sauce is very similar to this celery recipe, but there's no tomatoes, it is replaced by mushrooms.

Ingredients

A pound of Beef
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
A small bunch of celery stalks with some hearts if possible. Washed and sliced
Four medium sized tomatoes, chopped
Half a medium sized onion, sliced
Ground pepper,
Salt and spices to taste.

How to Make Squash Salad - Serve with Roast Beef

This is related to my carb-free menu ideas, sometimes I just want to load up with vegetables and protein and stay away from carbohydrates for a meal or two. Squash is a great vegetable and when it is roasted, it has a deep flavor that stands and gives your salad so much more personality. I made this with roast beef, but chicken and other meats or fish will suffice too.

Ingredients

One large green pepper
2 medium sized green or yellow squash
5 medium sized tomatoes
1/2 a large onion
a small pack of mushroom

How to Make Couscous and Shrimp Salad

Couscous is one of those side dishes I go for when I want a quick and easy dinner. Like rice, it goes with most soups, stews, and sauces and better than rice, it cooks in just 5 minutes. It is also lighter than rice and much healthier, unless you're using brown rice.

For those who are not familiar with couscous but may know semolina, they are one and the same. Couscous is semolina in grains rather than floury as we use in eating our soups. In the grainy couscous form, you serve with vegetables, stewed meat and lots of spices, as couscous can be a bit bland otherwise. Put on top, or mix together to make a salad, like this recipe.

Roast Pork Ribs with Cheese and Lettuce Salad

A. THE PORK RIBS

This is similar to how I prefer the Beef Ribs

1. Defrost the ribs in the fridge
2.  Cut into single pieces and rub all over with the spices
3. Put cooking spray on your oven-proof tray and place the ribs side by side
4. Grill in the oven on low heat for 15 minutes on each side.
5. Your meat is ready.

Menu Ideas - Chili with Rice and Tomato Stew

What we call chili over here is very close to our beans stew, but made with more tomato paste, minced meat and a variety of vegetables and spices. I will be sharing the full recipe soon. On this occasion, I combined it with our traditional white rice and stew for a very hearty meal topped of with chicken. Enjoy.

How to Make Chin-Chin with Eggs and Milk

Chin Chin is one of Nigeria's favorite pastries. It is made from short crust pastry mixture and then deep fried. The result is usually crunchy, but you can switch up the ingredients to have a more textured and soft outcome. I prefer mine not too crunchy, so I use eggs, and more milk, butter and sugar. There is no rising, or baking, rolling and cutting the dough is the only complicated part of the process.

Ingredients
2 eggs
500g of Plain Sieved Flour
75ml of 2% milk
150g of sugar
150g of butter
1/2 a teaspoon of salt
1/2 a teaspoon  of baking powder
1/2 a teaspoon  of Lion Curry mixed spices
Vegetable Oil (enough to deep fry or half your pot)