Home-Style Nigerian Jollof Rice
The heart of West African comfort food, this smoky, spicy rice is slow-simmered in a rich tomato and pepper base until every grain is infused with flavor.
mostly unattended — the clock does the work
By @amara.okafor
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Ingredients
for 4 servings
- 500 glong grain parboiled rice — rinsed and drained
- 4Roma tomatoes
- 2red bell peppers
- 3Scotch Bonnet peppers — stemmed and seeded
- 1yellow onion — chopped
- 1fresh ginger — minced
- 3 clovesgarlic cloves — minced
- 1 cantomato paste
- 500 mlchicken stock
- 60 mlvegetable oil
- 1 tspcurry powder
- 1 tspdried thyme
- 2bay leaves
- 500 gchicken thighs — chopped into bite-sized pieces
Equipment
checked against your kitchen
- ✗blender
the compiler will re-target this step when the Compile Sheet lands
- ✓stovetop
What cooks learned
Only 4 cooks have logged this one in Cook Mode so far — not enough to say anything about where it goes wrong.
Method
- 1
Place the tomatoes, bell peppers, Scotch Bonnet peppers, onion, ginger, and garlic in a blender. Pulse until it forms a coarse puree.
5 min→ pepper mix
- 2parallel track
In a medium pot, combine the chicken pieces with sliced onions, salt, and pepper. Simmer over medium heat until fully cooked.
20 min · 2 min attention⏱ cooked chicken · 20 min→ cooked chicken
- 3
Heat the vegetable oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot. Add the chopped onion and sauté until translucent.
5 min - 4
Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until it darkens to a rich rust-red color.
10 minDone when: the oil begins to separate from the sides of the paste
- 5
Pour in the pepper mix, curry powder, thyme, and bay leaves. Simmer uncovered for 15 minutes until the liquid reduces and thickens.
15 min · 5 min attention⏱ Step 5 timer · 15 min - 6
waits for: steps 2 and 5
Stir in the cooked chicken (discarding excess liquid), the chicken stock, and the parboiled rice. Season to taste.
3 min - 7
Cover the pot tightly with foil and a lid. Reduce heat to very low and steam for 15-20 minutes until the rice is tender and has absorbed all liquid.
20 min · 1 min attention⏱ grains are fluffy and tender but not mushy · 20 minDone when: grains are fluffy and tender but not mushy