Ofada Rice: Quick cooking tips

Ofada rice and stew

Cooking is the process of preparing food, often with the use of heat. Cooking techniques and ingredients vary widely across the world, reflecting unique environmental, economic, and cultural traditions. wiki. 

There are dishes peculiar to Africa and Nigeria. Both men and women need to learn how to cook and develop culinary skills peculiar to their custom and tradition along with global practices and experiences in the kitchen.

Ingredients:
Tomatoes, enough to make a small pot of stew

Tomatoe puree, one small tin

Red pepper (what we Yoruba's calll 'rodo')

Salt and Maggi, or any seasoning of your choice

Garlic cloves, two small ones

Onions, two medium-sized bulbs

Red oil

Green pepper, (the type you buy for fried rice, what oyinbo calls 'dummbell' [or is it drumbells?])

Garden egg, 3 large bulbs

locust beans, (what we call 'iru')

The 'Extras' - diced beef, shredded stock fish, 'roundabout', ponmo, shaki, etc

Direction:
Step 1: Chop the onions into tiny bits. Some people prefer to blend it after chopping, so it is not visible for those who do not like to see it in the meal. Do the same to the garlic cloves. Blend the tomatoes to a fine paste. Dice the red and green pepper into tiny pieces, keep the seeds.

Step 2: Boil the garden egg until a bit tender. Skin the bulbs and mash up until soft and pasty. Blend the locust beans to a fine paste. Boil the meat pieces to be used as'Extras'.

Step 3: Put the pot on the burner and heat it up until dry.Add oil (enough to make an 'Ijesha' stew - which means at the end of the cooking, there should still be oil enough to drain on top of the stew), and wait for it to heat up as well. Make sure that you make the stew out in the open or when no one is around that might choke from the heat. Add salt.

Step 4: Add the onion, locust beans and garlic paste.Stir, and add the tomato puree. Stir

Step 5: Add the diced pepper and stir, then add the garden egg paste. The garden egg will absorb most of the oil. Add your seasoning. Stir.

Step 6: Taste the stew. By now it should be full of the customary seeds, and at the same time peppery and delicious.Add the pieces of stock fish, ponmo, diced beef, shaki, 'roundabout' and other stuff you want the eaters to crunch their teeth on. Stir
Serve with rice, on beans, and enjoy!

@WEEC_NG