Africa – Preparation of Rice and Tomato Source (Stew)

By Verdzekov Bernard

The preparation of rice and stew is an easy meal to get by but still has its own tricks like other meals. The meal entails a little care and instructions for you to be able to come up with a delicious meal. This meal rice and stew is eating everywhere and nearly recognized by the whole world. This is because the meal is so delicious. It is eating by families on occasional days in Africa or periods and on normal weekly days. The ingredients of this meals are moderately expensive. The price may fluctuate seasonally. The main ingredient is tomatoes and it gets scares at time because of seasonal factors which causes the price to rise. This stew mentioned is eating with rice or with ripe plantains or with white yams. Varieties of accompaniment. I love to call this cuisine world cuisine, though eating by many locals of west Africa in particular, I term it world cuisine still because, it is eating by many people around the world. It is a common dish that is known by so many people around the world.

Going forward to write on how the dish is prepared, I will like every reader to pay attention and to follow the procedure and guide carefully so as to come up with a successful stew.

Ingredients needed

§ 1/5 cup of Vegetable oil

§ 1 bulb of onion

§ Fresh meat (red meat)

§ Ginger

§ Fresh tomatoes

§ Green spices

§ 5 peeled garlics cloves

§ 2 canned tomatoes paste

§ 1-2 curry powder for flavor and taste

§ 1 teaspoon white pepper

§ 4-5 maggi

§ Salt to taste

Procedure

§ Chop your meat into small presentable, eatable slices.

§ Boil meet with salt, pepper and with sliced onions about half a bulb of onions in a pot until is ready. This boiling process will take approximately 25-30min. After this is set, put aside while prepare the other ingredient for the stew.

§ Boil your fresh tomatoes, making sure the water you put in the pot should be more than the tomatoes in the pot, drain well, then slice into small pieces and put in a blender and blend. Put in a boll. Then put the other ingredients like slice onions, chopped green spices, garlics, pepper, ginger and blend all together. In one pot, put all the blended ingredients into the pot you will use for the preparation of the stew.

§ Turn on the heat and allow to boil for about 10min. steer the pot frequently to prevent the paste from sticking to the pot.

§ Into the pot, add your meat stock with canned tomatoes and allow it to cook for about 5min or more. This can process tomatoes is needed just to increase the color of the stew to me. So, it could even be optional to some people. Make sure you use some of the stock not all so as to add to the source during the preparation. Because, in case of water shortage, you will use the stock water

§ Add about 1 or 1-1/2 glass of groundnut oil into the pot and steer well leaving it to cook for about 5min. Add water if you see the source is getting dry but not ready. The water most likely to be used should be the stock from the boiled meat.

§ Add curry powder, with your maggi and salt to taste. This should be about 2 sachets of curry powder. This curry powder is good as it helps increase the flavor of the stew you preparing. After adding the curry powder to the pot, you may finish the remaining stock water into the pot and then leave for about 5-10min steering it after 2 or 3min each so as to prevent the source from sticking to the pot.

§ Serve with accompaniment.

Some will ask why I boiled the tomatoes before blending. During preparation of stew, most people go straight forward to blend their tomatoes. They don’t bother boiling it first. But today, after reading this, you will know why boiling is necessary. Those who don’t boil their tomatoes are likely to experience sour taste in the source after preparation or after the source stays overnight. This is because the tomatoes are prepared together with that water in the tomatoes. The water in the tomatoes is not good to be used for the preparation of tomatoes source. But when you boil, the water in the tomatoes evaporates then you drain well using a strainer making the tomatoes good for preparation after that.

Also, if using chicken, use same methods for which you use for the meat. Kill your chicken, cut into parts, boil or roast it. If boiling be ready to keep the stock, if roasting, you will need to make some ginger spice with maggi, salt to taste, before you roast. keeping the chicken aside after which, you will add into the stew after the stew is half done letting it to cook together with the stew so that the source gets into the chicken making it good for consumption and flavor enriching.

Like I said, stew could serve with white boiled rice, boiled white yams, or with boiled ripe plantains. But the one I will talk about below is how you could boil your rice to eat with stew or tomatoes source. Errors made here could cost you to throw the rice. But following my guide, be sure to succeed.

§ Measure rice first. It could be 5-6-7 or 8 cups of rice.

§ Wash rice first using your two hands rubbing them with each other, after which you drain well using a strainer.

§ NOTE: When you want to boil rice measure first. Making sure the measurement rims with the size of your pot and those who will eat as well. This is because boiling more than what the pot can contain is wastage. Boiling about 6-7 or 8 cups of rice, needs about 2-3 bowls of water. Put the water first in the pot and turn on the heat. Allow the water to boil for about 20min. When it is boiled, don’t turn of the heat, pour in your drained rice into the pot and cover the pot.

§ Allow for about 20-25min after which you check to make sure the water hasn’t dried off, or if it is ready. If not ready but needing water, add about 2-4 cups depending on how much time is left for it to get ready. This is usually determined after the rice has been tasted. If still strong or partially soft, you will be able to estimate what quantity of water to add and time left for you to check if it is ready.

§ After the rice is ready, and the water dried off completely, serve with stew as seen on the photo above or in a manner you like.

YOU COULD EMAIL ME at [email protected] FOR MORE AFRICAN DISHES YOU FIND DIFFICULT TO PREPARE.

ENJOY YOUR MEAL.