How To Cook Nigerian Stew

The Nigerian stew is a unique blend of tomatoes, onion, fresh hot pepper, fried in vegetable oil and to which meat, or fish or a combination of both added, with some seasonings.

These are the list of the ingredients required to cook the stew;

1. Ripe Tomatoes (Fresh) And Tin Tomatoes

These two ingredients, fresh tomatoes and tin tomatoes are very important in cooking Nigerian stew. Both two ingredients are required in making the stew for the Nigerian stew.

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The fresh tomatoes gives the Nigerian stew that fresh fruity taste of tomatoes, while the tin one reddens the Nigerian stew or serves as a colorant to the outward appearance of the Nigerian stew.

Tomatoes generally are very rich in vitamin A, plus some other vitamins attached to it. Tomatoes can be taken as fruit or used in cooking of stew or certain soups like the egusi soup which makes use of diced tomatoes in its preparation.

When applying tomatoes to your dish except in preparation of snacks, tomatoes whether fresh or tin should be fried a little to remove that citric taste or sour taste as some may call it, for to properly blend with the rest of the ingredients used in cooking the food, otherwise the tomatoes may not completely blend with the rest of your ingredients.

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2. Fresh Pepper

Pepper is yet another useful ingredient in preparing Nigerian stew , it gives it that peppery taste, and makes the stew sharper in taste.

Though too much of it can produce a negative effect especially for the asthmatic consumers who don’t like too much pepper in their foods.

Generally pepper should be added moderately so as to enable the consumers to peacefully enjoy the food without having to complain of too much pepper.

Fresh pepper is most suitable for the cooking of Nigerian stew with chicken, though other species can still be used depending on the way you want it.

Pepper comes in different varieties, like the red pepper which is commonly seen around and most available and cheaper to buy in the market, we also have the yellow pepper or rather called the Nsukka pepper because it is mainly cultivated in Nsukka area of Enugu State, we also have the one they call green pepper, which is used in cooking Nigerian stew, jollof rice, party rice, or preparing some snacks like shawamma, etc.

We have the one they call dry pepper, which is reddish in colour and mainly used as ground pepper when ground. There is also the tatashe, which is another specie of pepper that is used to cook certain delicacies.

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3. Onions

Just like you find in other dishes, onions is vital in cooking Nigerian stew, it makes the stew or it gives the stew that sassy taste.

Onions can be put more than one times in the course of cooking the Nigerian stew. It can be put intermittently as thecooking goes on.

Without it, Nigerian stew may not be that enjoyable to the mouth because it will not be that tasty as you expect it to be, despite the presence of these other ingredients.

Onions comes in different types, we have the white onions and the red onions. Each of them has its unique flavor it adds to any dish you may apply them to.

The white onions is mainly used in preparing such dishes such as Nigerian stew, jollof rice, different types of stews including chicken stew, etc, while the red ones are used mainly in preparing different types of soups.

Every onions is first peeled to remove the outer cover, then after removing the outer cover , you then wash it thoroughly and chop it or slice it, or you may prefer to blend it as the case may be. Onions is an important ingredient in every dish that should not be overlooked.

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4. Vegetable Oil

This is another essential ingredient in cooking fried rice, it is used in frying some of the ingredients, and as well producing that oily delicious effect in every fried rice.

Though there are so many vegetable oils that can be used to cook Nigerian stew, such as, soya oil, (gotten from soya beans), we also have vegetable oil, like the popular Kings vegetable oil, Turkey vegetable oil, and so many of them you can find in the market.

Though i would like to advise you to go for the less fatty ones, that is the ones low in cholesterol, especially for the sake of hypertensive consumers or guest that will like to enjoy the food without being exposed to the risk of increasing their blood pressure.

5. Fish

There are many kinds of fish that can be used to prepare the Nigerian stew, they include;the iced fish, which is most common in the preparation of most Nigerian stews.

The iced fish is a kind of fish that has a unique fish taste, it is very easy to process and very cheap in the market. Iced fish is a rich source of protein and gives every stew a delicious taste. Iced fish is mainly preserved in the refrigerator, no wonder it is called iced or ice fish.

There is also the smoked fish, this any fish gotten from water either iced fish or other fishes but in smoked form, for example we have the one they call sumbia fish. The rest are like the stock fish, dry fish, round fish, catfish, bunga fish, etc.

a. 1 kg fish

b. 8 medium size tomatoes

c. 1 tin tomato puree

d. 2 medium size fresh pepper

e. 1 medium onion

f. 3 table spoons vegetable oil

g. 4 medium size tatashe

h. 1 cube knorr cube

i. 1 teaspoon thyme

j. 1 litre water.

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Method of Preparation

1. Cut the fish and wash thoroughly

2. Steam with few slices of onions and salt for about 10 minutes

3. Pour the vegetable oil into a pot.

4. Add the ground ingredients toether with thetomato puree

5. Stir and fry for about 10 minutes

6. Add the knorr cube and pour the seasoning fish

7. Simmer for about 5 minutes

8. Stir and add salt to taste

9. Remove from heat and serve with boiled rice and enjoy

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