The staple foods in the Nigerian diet include: peanuts or peanuts, yams, cassava, fish, rice, okra, bananas, guinea corn and millet and palm nuts.

They are usually starchy and Nigerians love to cook with lots of pepper and spices especially the Southwest and Southeast. This recipe uses all local ingredients to create a tasty and nutritious meal.

These recipes celebrate the traditional food of Nigeria: —

Egusi Soup

Egusi crushed seeds give this soup a unique color and flavor. If you can not find seeds in your store Egusi, you can substitute pumpkin seeds or pips can be found in supermarkets in Latin America. This soup is thickened with flour ground from seeds of gourds, melons, pumpkins, and gourds, many of which are native Africa.

200 g of water leaves
50 g of seeds Egusi
1 teaspoon dry crushed red pepper
1 medium onion
100 ml Palm Oil
10 g dry soil Crayfish
120 g fresh tomatoes
100 ml water
Salt and pepper to taste

Wash the water leaves thoroughly in clean water and fresh.
The blender or grind onions, tomatoes and Egusi seeds until smooth.
Add the dry ground pepper and fry in palm oil for five minutes.
Add water, cover and simmer for five minutes.
Now add the water leaves, replace lid and cook for another five minutes.
Finally, Add crayfish and seasoning, heat through well.

Serve with pounded yam or cooked rice and meat stew, to provide protein.
Alternatively, serve with the EBA, fufu or appropriate carbohydrate.

Okra Curry

This traditional recipe of okra (or okro, as is called somewhere in Nigeria) is one that can be created anywhere in the world, as it uses ingredients that can be found at any local store.

The word "okra" comes from Africa and means "lady fingers" in Igbo, a language spoken in Nigeria. Although Okra originated in Africa, is now available worldwide. Some people consider Okra alone is too sticky, but this tasty recipe makes good use of their property.

When buying fresh okra, look for young pods free of bruises, tender but not soft, and no more than 4 inches long.

500g Okra
2 onions
180 g of oil
3 cloves garlic
2 tomatoes
2 teaspoons curry powder
½ tsp turmeric
A pinch of black pepper
½ teaspoon salt

A slice of onion finely and fry gently in oil.
The whisk the remaining onion, tomatoes and garlic.
Add this puree to the frying onions.
Add the spices.
Stir-fry for five minutes.
Superior and tail the okra and cut into pieces about 1 cm thick.
Add to the spices and cook slowly for 10-15 minutes.

Serve with cooked rice and meat stew, for protein.

With thanks to the people of Nigeria that made us so welcome in their homes, gave us a love for traditional food and Nigeria that helped us overcome the fear of eating with your fingers!

For more tips and ideas for cooking and traditional food from around the world, visit Nigeria Recipes and Food

This article was submitted by Jen Carter, owner of World Food and Recipes website.

About the Author:

Jen has travelled around the world and enjoys collecting and sharing recipes from other countries.

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – Traditional Nigerian recipes

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