If you want to explore the rich cuisine of West Africa, then try out the dishes of Nigeria. To help you out, we have come up with a list of their top ten popular foods. These Nigerian dishes will allow you to take a break from your daily food routine.
1. Jollof Rice
It is rice prepared with onions, tomatoes, chili peppers, and scotch bonnets. There are various takes on the ingredients, but these are most essential. Jollof Rice is a regional dish made during celebrations. In addition, many communities of West Africa like to make it for their friends, family, and guests.
2. Egusi Soup
Egusi is a famous stew of Nigeria. It is made with melon ground seeds, different kinds of meat, or crayfish. This soup owes its name to the protein-rich egusi that gives it a creamy, velvety texture with a good flavor. Nigerians have this soup with pounded yam or fufu that gives an overall savory taste.
3. Efo Riro
It is a spinach stew made with red bell peppers and scotch bonnets. It refers to a leafy stirred vegetable that you can prepare with fish and meat along with ground crayfish. Moreover, it gets its thick flavor from locust beans or iru. You can also prepare it with palm oil.
4. Afang Soup
When we talk about Afang Soup, we mostly associate it with the South Nigerian Efik tribe. It is a soup made with vegetables, seafood like periwinkles and prawns, stockfish, and meat. The vegetables present in this dish are Afang or Okazi leaves. You can have it along with pounded yam, fufu, or Eba.
5. Tuwo Shinkafa
People of North Nigeria enjoy this dish heartily for both their lunch and dinner. Tuwo Shinkafa refers to mashed rice. You can make it by boiling your rice and then smashing it into a partly solid form. Additionally, you can serve it with soups such as Miyan Kardashi, bean soup, and Miyan Kuka.
6. Okpa
This Okpa dish is a delicacy of Nigeria. It is most common in the Eastern part of Nigeria, especially in the Enugu State. Its main ingredients consist of unique beans like Bambara nuts. Some of its secondary elements include fresh pepper, salt, pumpkin vegetables, crayfish, as well as palm oil.
7. Suya
Suya refers to a Nigerian dish that has seasoned beef or chicken slices that you can roast on top of charcoal grills. Dry spice or suya is its essential ingredient made with a mix of cayenne pepper and groundnuts. It is a nutritious and cheap snack. In restaurants, you get them with tomatoes and onions.
8. Moin Moin
This dish named Moin Moin comprises oil, black-eyed peas, fresh ground peppers like chili, scotch bonnet, and bell pepper. You can have it beside akamu, jollof rice, and fried plantain. Most people in Nigeria have it as a snack. However, they prepare it for special occasions as well as celebrations.
9. Chin Chin
It is a deep-fried dish that Nigerians generally serve to their guests. They have a crunchy texture, and they make it with sugar, flour, and milk. Some people like to bake it rather than preparing it in a deep-fried form. You can make it for your evening snack with ground nutmeg.
10. Kosai/Akara
Kosai or Akara is street food in Nigeria that you can take home hot and fresh and save for later. It is made with chili, onions, and beans. They are mainly eaten like fritters. You can make these crunchy balls with beans which you have to soak overnight.
Sources:
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