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Nigerian Fried Rice
Nigerian Fried Rice
What sets this fried rice apart from others is the use of thyme, curry powder, and liver. You can use beef or chicken livers in this recipe. If you aren’t a liver fan, you can definitely omit and add chicken or more shrimp. If you want this meal to be vegan, you can leave out the protein and use a vegetable stock powder instead of chicken. You can also add in more vegetables as well such as carrots, green beans, mushrooms, or red bell pepper. This rice is typically served as a main course since it is fairly heavy.
Ingredients
- 1 lb raw shrimp peeled and deveined
- 8 oz beef or chicken liver cut into small cubes
- 6 cups cooked basmati rice
- 1 tbsp maggi
- 1/2 medium white onion diced
- 1 cup peas
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 3 green onion chopped
- 1 tsp thyme
- 1 tsp white pepper
- 1 tsp curry powder
- 2 tsp chicken bouillon powder
- vegetable oil for frying
Instructions
- Heat 2 tbsp of cooking oil in a large sauté pan over medium high heat. Sauté the shrimp for 2 minutes a side. Set aside in a large bowl.
- Add 2 more tbsp of cooking oil to the pan. Sauté the liver for 2-3 minutes. Set aside in the large bowl.
- Add 1/2 cup of oil to the sauté pan. Add in the rice. Season with the maggi. Cook for 5 minutes. Set aside in the large bowl.
- Add a 1/4 cup of cooking oil to the sauté pan. Add in the peas, onions, garlic, thyme, curry powder, white pepper, and bouillon. Sauté for 4-5 minutes.
- Add the shrimp, liver, and rice back into the sauté pan. Mix with the sautéed vegetables thoroughly. Cook for another 3-4 minutes.
- Serve a main course.
Mandazi
Mandazi
Fried little donuts are a very popular street food throughout Africa. In West African countries, they make little donut holes called puff puff. In East African countries, they make a similar donut called mandazi. Mandazi are cut into triangular shapes. They have the flavors of coconut, cardamom, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Sometimes you will see them with a side of caramel sauce to dip them in.This is a simplified version of the donut. The original version has yeast in the recipe, needing time for the mandazi to rise. There is also a baked version for those who don’t want to fry. I will touch base on these in future posts.
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 3 tbsp shredded coconut
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup coconut milk
- 3 tbsp melted butter
- vegetable oil for frying
- 1 tbsp powdered sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
Instructions
- Mix together all of the dry ingredients.
- Mix together all of the wet ingredients.
- Mix together all of the wet and dry ingredients until a dough is formed.
- Roll out dough to 1/2” thick on a lightly floured surface.
- Cut triangular shapes out of the dough.
- Fill up a small pot with an 1 1/2 of cooking oil over medium high heat. If using a thermometer, the oil should read 350 degrees. Add a few of the dough triangles to the oil. You will need to cook these in batches.
- Fry for about 2 minutes a side. Drain on paper towel.
- Sprinkle the powdered sugar/cinnamon mix over the donuts while still warm.
Char Siu Banh Mi
BBQ Pork Banh Mi
Seriously one of my favorite sandwich’s ever. There are many variations of this sandwich. All will be on a French baguette with mayo, liver spread, cucumber, pickled carrots and daikon, jalapeños, cilantro, and sriracha. The protein is up to you. I made some char siu(recipe posted below) because bbq pork is my absolute favorite. You can make these with canned luncheon loaf, chicken, meatballs, or an extra thick layer of pate. Make sure to use a baguette that is crusty on the outside but soft on the inside. I like to buy my baguettes from Trung Nam Vietnamese/French bakery in Saint Paul. None better.
Ingredients
- char siu bbq pork
- liver spread
- mayonnaise
- sriracha
- cucumber long thin slices
- cilantro sprigs
- pickled carrot and daikon
- fresh jalapeños
- baguettes
Instructions
- Spread mayonnaise on the top side of the baguette. Spread liver spread on the bottom side of the baguette. Put a generous layer of bbq pork on top of the liver spread. Top the pork with cucumber, jalapeños, pickled carrots and daikon, and a couple of sprigs of cilantro. Squirt some sriracha across the top of the mayo side.
- Enjoy this sandwich. Try not to eat 3 at once.
Char Siu (Chinese BBQ Pork)
If I was put on death row and asked what the last thing on Earth that I'd like to eat, my final meal, char siu would be on the top of the list. I have loved this bbq pork ever since I was a little kid. My family would order everything with bbq pork in it from the Chinese restaurant that we got take out from. I love this pork so much, I snuck some of the pork in the picture into the movie theatre in a ziplock bag.Char siu is typically made out of pork shoulder. It can be made out of pork sirloin, pork loin, or tenderloin; but they tend to be less juicy than pork shoulder. Fat is a good thing here. You will want a 3lbs. piece of boneless pork shoulder. I purchased a whole bone in shoulder and processed out the coppa roast and the flat iron, If the coppa roast was a beef cut, you'd know it as a chuck eye roast. You don't have to go to this extreme. You can use any part of the shoulder. I just happen to know how to cut these muscles out of the shoulder and use them. Cut the pork shoulder into 2" in diameter chunks with the grain. The char siu gets its color from the red bean curd. If you've ever seen this pork really red, the color will be coming from red food coloring. But I want to avoid food coloring as much as possible. The red color in the bean curd comes from a natural fungus. This pork needs to marinate for at least 3 days.When ready to cook the pork, preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Yes, 400 degrees. Normally when you think of cooking pork shoulder, you cook it low and slow. Not here. It will be tender. Trust me. I was skeptical the first time I tried making this. Roast this for 15 minutes. Pull it out of the oven and brush on the glaze. Roast for 7 minutes. You want to do this for 3 times total. The honey will caramelize the outside while the bean curd juice will give it a nice red color. Once done roasting, let sit for 10-15 minutes before slicing.
Ingredients
- 3 lbs boneless pork shoulder
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 3 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 3 red bean curd cubes + 2 tbsp liquid
- 1 1/2 tbsp Chinese 5 spice powder
- 3 tbsp honey
- 3 tbsp Chinese cooking wine
- 3/4 tsp white pepper
- 1 1/2 tsp sesame oil
- 3 garlic cloves minced
Pork Glaze
- 3 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp red bean curd liquid
- 1 tbsp cooked marinade
Instructions
- Take a 3lb. piece of pork shoulder and cut it into a few long chunks with the grain. Each piece should be around 2″ in diameter. In this picture, I cut out the coppa roast and the flat iron. The coppa roast is the center muscle of the shoulder. If this was beef, you’d know it as a chuck eye roast.
- Mix together the soy sauce, hoisin sauce, red bean curd cubes and liquid, 5 spice powder, honey, cooking, wine, white pepper, sesame, oil, and garlic cloves. Mash the bean curds into a paste. Mix everything thoroughly.
- Add the pork shoulder pieces and the marinade to a gallon sized ziplock bag. Marinate for 72 hours. Turn the bag over every 12 hours.
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Lay the pork shoulder pieces on a rack onto of a foil covered baking sheet. Add a couple cups of water to the baking sheet to prevent smoking. Roast the pork for 15 minutes.
- While the pork is roasting, mix together honey, red bean curd liquid, and some of the marinade. Make sure to cook the marinade in the microwave for a few seconds before mixing in. Now you have your pork glaze.
- After the first 15 minutes of roasting, take the pork out of the oven and brush on the pork glaze. Don’t worry about getting the bottom. Put the pork back in the oven and roast for 7 minutes. Repeat this step 2 more times, for a total of 3 glazes.
- After the final glazing and roasting, let the pork rest for 10-15 minutes before slicing.
Pickled Carrots and Daikon
These pickled carrots and daikon are used as a topping for banh mi sandwiches. Sweet and vinegary with a nice crunch. These are good in your refrigerator for up to a month.
Ingredients
- 6 oz carrots cut into large matchstick sized pieces
- 6 oz daikon cut into large matchstick sized pieces
- 2 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup white vinegar
- 6 tbsp sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
Instructions
- Cut your carrots and daikon into large matchstick sized pieces.
- Place them in a bowl with 2 tsp of sugar and 1 tsp salt. Let sit for 5 minutes. Liquid will start to pool at the bottom. Rinse in cold water and pat dry.
- Mix together the water, vinegar, salt, and sugar until dissolved.
- Place the carrots and Daikon in a mason jar. Pour in the brine. Let pickle for a day before use.
