Palm Oil Nigerian Stew

NIGERIAN STEW with palm oil

The Nigerian stew is a part of many Nigerian meals. Rice and stew, beans and stew, bread and stew, plantain and stew, spaghetti and stew….you get the drift. And there are as many recipes as there are families. This is how I make mine and I’ve been told it’s the best recipe ever J. I’ll make this a chicken stew but you may also make fish stew, goat meat stew, oxtail stew or vegetarian

You can also just add palm oil to your regular pasta sauce. Add just a little bit the first time you use it

You’ll need a 10 cup capacity pot /sauce pan and blender

chicken

6 chicken thighs

1.5 cup water

½ medium onion (sliced)

1 teaspoon salt

2 buoillon cubes

1 teaspoon curry powder

1 teaspoon thyme

Stew

8 Plum tomatoes

½ cup water

1 medium onion (cut ¾ into big chunks for blending and slice ¼)

1 clove garlic chopped (optional)

1 Habanero pepper (use 2 if you can stand the heat). Or use 1 Red bell pepper if you don’t want any heat

3tablespoons palm oil

1 tbsp curry powder

1 tbsp thyme

2 bouillon cubes (crushed)

½ teaspoon ginger

1)      First boil all the ingredients under “chicken” for 20minutes or until chicken is done. Remove chicken from the broth and set both aside. You may grill or fry the chicken to add to the stew later but be sure to keep the broth you’ve just created

2)      While the chicken is boiling, blend ¾ chunks of onions, bouillon cubes, curry powder, tomatoes, pepper, ½ cup water. Set aside

3)      Set a 10cup capacity pan or pot medium heat and add the palm oil. Heat until it begins to smoke gently (about 2 minutes), then

4)      Add the garlic and sliced onions. Allow to cook for about 2minutes. Don’t let it burn.

5)      Add the blended mixture to the pot and also add the chicken broth, thyme and stir thoroughly.

6)      Cover and allow to boil for 20minutes or until it has reached the texture or thickness that you like. Taste for salt and add salt if you want

7)      Serve with rice, potatoes, beans, bread, plantains, yams

See some really nice pictures and other Nigerian stew recipes here: http://www.avartsycooking.com/2010/11/nigerian-stew/ and