Nigerian cuisine consists of dishes or food items from the hundreds of Native African ethnic groups that comprise Nigeria. Like other West African cuisines, it uses spices and herbs with palm oil or groundnut oil to create deeply flavored sauces and soups.
Nigerian feasts can be colourful and lavish, while aromatic market and roadside snacks cooked on barbecues or fried in oil are in abundance and varied.
Tropical fruits such as watermelon, pineapple, coconut, banana, orange, papaya and mango are mostly consumed in Nigeria.
Nigerian cuisine, like many West African cuisines, is known for being savoury and spicy.
History
Nigerian cuisine has emerged from available resources in agriculture. Crops like yam, African rice, black-eyed peas, millet, sorghum, okro, egusi, and palm oil, amongst others are native to the Nigerian region and are staple foods in cooking. Introduced crops from trade, such as cassava and corn, are also common in Nigerian cuisine. A variety of native-grown vegetables are also staples. Indigenous fruit trees including African star apple (Chrysophyllum albidum), African mango (Irvingia gabonensis), African or native pear (Dacryodes edulis), hog plum (Spondias mombin) and garden egg are important as well. Yam is mainly produced in West Africa, in countries including Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, and Cameroon, which collectively represent 97% of African yam production.
Nigerian meals are traditionally made up of carbohydrate-rich foods like rice, yams, and potatoes, often accompanied by protein sources such as beef, goat, mutton, fish and chicken. Nigerian dishes frequently include hot peppers and a variety of spices, giving the cuisine its distinctive flavors.
Nigerian cuisine hails from 371 different ethnic groups, each providing unique cooking methods, ingredients, and ceremonial practices, evolving and continuing to evolve over the course of millennia. The Federal Ministry of Arts, Culture and Creative Economy recognise the diverse culinary culture of Nigeria as diverse as the nation's ethnic demographics. Traditional dishes such as Fufu and Ugba reflect the diversity of Nigeria's ethnic groups and form a part of national heritage.
Entrees
Rice-based
Coconut rice is rice made with coconut milk, and other spices. Jollof rice is a rice dish made with pureed tomato and Scotch bonnet-based sauce. Ofada rice is a South West Nigerian rice variety. It is eaten with ayamase or ofada sauce. Fried rice is a rich dish made with mixed vegetables (cabbage, carrots, green peas), meat, poultry or prawns. Pate is made with ground dry corn, rice or acha. Mostly combined with vegetables (spinach), tomatoes, onions, peppers, garden eggs (eggplants), locust beans, groundnuts, biscuit bones and minced meat are common in northwestern Nigeria, like Kano, Kaduna, Nassarawa and Plateau. Tuwo masara is a corn-flour dish eaten in Northern Nigeria. Tuwo shinkafa, thick rice pudding usually eaten with miyan kuka (a thick soup) and goat meat stew or miyan taushe, a pumpkin stew made with spinach, meat (usually goat or mutton) and smoked fish. It is primarily served in the northern part of the country. White rice—White rice and local rice is usually served with stews, pepper soup and sauces. It is widely served with a thick tomato and pepper-based stew. Banga rice is a traditional Nigerian rice recipe made from palm nut and rice. It is very common in the southern (Delta State) and eastern parts of the country. Palm-oil rice is often referred to as 'local rice' or 'yellow rice'; it is usually prepared with fresh palm oil, assorted fish (dried fish and smoked fish), and garnished with local spices like locust beans ('okpeyi' or 'dawa dawa'), onions and pepper. It could be made as jollof or as white rice with the palm oil stew as a separate sauce. Curried rice is rice made with fresh turmeric or curry powder, onions, salt and seasoning to taste and then vegetable sauce is made to go along with it.
Masa is made from 'tuwo shinkafa' rice that is blended after being destoned (onions and other spices are put in it). Then, yeast is added, and it is allowed to rise. It is later cooked on low heat in a custom-made masa pot. Danbu rice is also a type of rice usually made in the North. It used to be ground and mixed with pepper. Groundnut oil rice is prepared with groundnut oil, using fish (dry or fresh), fresh tomatoes, onions, fresh pepper and a lot of crayfish.
Bean-based Akara, also known as 'bean cake', is a type of fritter made from beans originating from Yoruba people of Southwestern Nigeria. Gbegiri, a bean-based soup from Yoruba people of Southwestern Nigeria. Abula soup. Abula is a combination of gbegiri, ewedu (vegetable soup) and stew. It is usually eaten with either amala (dried yam flour fufu) or lafun (dried cassava flour fufu) by the Yorubas in the southwestern part of Nigeria. Moi moi, also known as 'Ọ̀lẹ̀lẹ̀', originated from the Yoruba people of Southwestern Nigeria. It is a steamed bean pudding made from a mixture of washed and peeled black-eyed beans, blended together with onions and fresh ground peppers. Ekuru, a steamed savoury bean dish from the Yorubas of Southwestern Nigeria. Ewa aganyin, boiled beans eaten with a pepper sauce from Yorubas of Southwest Nigeria. Okpa, a common breakfast food made from Bambara nut flour popular among Igbos of Southeastern Nigeria. Adalu, a bean and sweet corn pottage from Yorubas of Southwest Nigeria.
Corn-based Egbo, a Yoruba specialty that can be eaten alone with pepper sauce or paired with beans.
Meat
Meat is used in most Nigerian dishes.
Suya, from the north of Nigeria, is a grilled meat coated with ground chili pepper, peanut powder, and other local spices. It is prepared barbecue-style using a skewer. This is one of the most famous Nigerian specialties and can be found within easy reach all over the country. Tsire refers specifically to meat which has a generous coating of peanut/chili powder. The meat may or may not be on a skewer. Kilishi is similar to beef jerky. It is made from meat that has been cut into very thin slices, which are then spread out to dry. A preparation of chili pepper, spices and local herbs is then prepared into a paste which is lightly brushed on both sides. This is then briefly grilled. Balangu refers to meat that has been grilled over a wood or coal fire. The meat is typically cooked in brown paper. Specifically, no seasoning is applied to bring out the natural flavour of the particular type of meat which may be goat, mutton or beef. Salt and spices can be added later according to taste. Dambu nama is a meat floss from Northern Nigeria. Nkwobi consists of cooked cow legs smothered in a thick, spicy palm oil sauce, a classic dish originating from southeast Nigeria.Okafor, C. (2014, April 14). Popularising African Delicacies. Realnews Magazine. Asun is spicy roasted goat chopped into bite-sized pieces, with bold aromatic flavors from onions, habanero, garlic and bell peppers. It is native to the Yoruba people of Ondo, South Western Nigeria. Peppered Ponmo is a typed of stewed goat or cow skin dish Bushmeat is also consumed in Nigeria. The grasshopper (cane rats) and giant african land snail are the most popular bushmeat species in Nigeria. Other bushmeat consumed include Antelope and duiker.
Soups and stews Egusi soup is prepared from thickened ground melon seeds. It contains leafy vegetables, seasonings, and meat. It is often eaten with dishes like amala, pounded yam, fufu, and eba. Banga soup is made from palm nuts and is eaten primarily in the south and mid-western parts of Nigeria. It is also known as atama soup by the Cross River and Akwa Ibom indigenes. This soup is usually made through extracting the juice from the palm nuts. It is usually served with any kind of swallow (garri, semo and pounded yam). Ofe akwu is also made from palm nuts, but prepared more like a stew meant to be eaten with rice and it is native to the Igbo people. Miyan kuka, very common among the Hausa people, is made from powdered baobab leaves and dried okra. Miyan yakuwa is a Hausa soup. Ewedu soup is popular amongst the Yoruba people of south-western Nigeria. Ewedu soup is usually prepared with jute leaves and cooked by pureeing the leaves with a blender or special broom. Ila alasepo is an okra soup dish of the Yoruba people. It usually contains many meat, fish and seafood varieties. Eka soup (beniseed soup) is a popular dish among the Idomas of Benue State, the Ogojas in Cross River and the Ibirams of Kogi State. Eka is a blend of sesame seeds, roasted groundnut and palm kernel puree. Margi special is common in the northeastern part of Nigeria, Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states. The soup comes from the Margi people who live in riverine areas. It is prepared with fresh fish of any kind and African soreal (yakuwa in Hausa or omblanji in Margi). Edikang-ikong is a vegetable soup made from ugu (pumpkin) leaves and waterleaf which originated from the Annang, Ibibio and Efik people. Gbegiri is a bean-based stew from southwest Nigeria. Pepper soup is a light soup made from a mix of meat and fish with herbs and spices. This is one of the few soups in Nigerian cuisine that can be eaten alone and is not used as a sauce for a carbohydrate main dish such as fufu or pounded yam. It can also be made with nutmeg and chili peppers. It can be garnished with fish, beef, goat meat or chicken. Pepper soup is sometimes an appetizer at official gatherings; however, it is consumed also in the evening at pubs and social gatherings. Afang is a vegetable soup which originated with the Efik people, Ibibio people and Ananng people in southeast Nigeria. It is prepared with waterleaf, afang (wild spinach), pomo, periwinkles and lots of assorted meat and fish. Corn soup, also known locally as omi ukpoka, is made with ground dry corn and blended with smoked fish. It is a common food of the Afemai, especially people from Agenebode in northern Edo state. Okra soup is made from okra and cooked until thickened. Efo riro, a stew made from leafy vegetables, pepper, palm oil and other ingredients, is common amongst the Yorubas. Miyan taushe, a blend of groundnut and pumpkin leaves spiced with pepper, dawadawa or iru, and bouillon cubes. It is best with tuwo shinkafa.
Maafe, a stew made with groundnuts (peanuts), tomatoes and onions as the base, can be varied with chicken, beef or fish and different leafy vegetables for subtle flavours. Groundnut stew is made with ground dry groundnuts and vegetables, fish, meat, local seasoning and palm oil by the Etsakor people in Edo state. Buka stew, is a Yoruba stew made from goat, beef or chicken; it is mainly cooked with tomatoes, onions, and pepper. Ogbono soup is made with ground ogbono seeds, with leafy greens, other vegetables, seasonings, and meat. Ogbono is also eaten with many dishes similar to pounded yam, amala, and fufu. Ofe nsala, made with utazi leaves, its origins are from the Igbo people. Ofe onugbu is made with cocoyam, palm oil, assorted fish and meat and seasonings, it is a dish native to the Igbo people. Ofada stew (ayamase) is a palm-oil-based stew native to the Yoruba people. It is made with palm oil, unripe pepper and tomatoes, beef, tripe, cow skin and locust beans. It is a stew for local ofada rice, also referred to as brown rice, usually served in 'ewe' (flat, broad leaves). Groundnut soup (peanut soup) is made from fresh peanut ground to paste, (though some may fry the peanut), fried in palm oil with onions and then boiled in stock. Ofe oha is made with cocoyam that used to be cooked and pounded, palm oil and seasonings, it is native to the Igbo people. Edo esan (black soup) is made mainly from scent leaf, uziza leaf and bitter leaf.