It’s not easy pinning down a national favorite dish for Nigeria, because this is a vast country with many distinct regional cuisines.

But one dish you shouldn’t leave Nigeria without eating is jollof rice, a great favourite all over West Africa, and one that is thought maybe the origin of the Cajun dish jambalaya.

A simple, spicy one-pot dish comprising, at its most basic, rice, tomatoes, onions and pepper, it’s often served at parties and other festive gatherings, along with other Nigerian favorites such as egusi soup (made with ground melon seeds and bitter leaf), fried plantains and pounded yam (iyan or fufu).

Other dishes to try in Nigeria include thick, spicy broths made with okra and flavoured with chicken or meat, and suya, which are spicy Nigerian shish kebabs (similar to Ghana’s chichinga) cooked over braziers by street vendors.

Ingredients

1/2 cup of oil (vegetable/canola/coconut, not olive oil).
5 fresh plum/Roma tomatoes, grinded, OR a 400-gram tin of tomatoes.
2 medium-sized red onions.

1/2 to 1 hot pepper, or to taste (yellow Scotch bonnets are my favourite).
7 fresh, red poblano peppers (or 5 large red bell peppers), seeds discarded.