PHOTOS OF DIFFERENT NIGERIAN RECIPES

Jollof Rice

Pounded Yam 

Beef 

Vegetable Soup (spinach)

The Fire of Love

A spice is a dried seed, fruit, root, bark, or vegetative substance primarily used for flavouring  colouring or preserving food. Sometimes a spice is used to hide other flavours. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are parts of leafy green plants also used for flavouring or as garnish. Many spices have antimicrobial properties. This may explain why spices are more commonly used in warmer climates, which have more infectious disease, and why use of spices is especially prominent in meat, which is particularly susceptible to spoiling. A spice may have an extra use, usually medicinal, religious ritual, cosmetics or perfume production, or as a vegetable. For example, turmeric roots are consumed as a vegetable and garlic as an antibiotic.

Now, just as spices "flavour, colour or preserve food", they could also flavour, colour and preserve our marriages. "How?" you may ask. Lets consider some of the variables that mar relationships

cinnamon

Moses used it as an ingredient in holy anointing oils (Exodus 30:22-25). Cleopatra (69-30 B.C.) is said to have carried cinnamon with her jewels. During the Roman Empire, cinnamon bark was burned as incense in the temples and wealthy Romans used it in their baths.

Cinnamon offers many health benefits such as:

  Anti-fungal, antibacterial and anti-parasitic properties

  Anti-inflammatory properties

  Excellent source of manganese, dietary fiber, iron and calcium

  Reduces blood sugar, triglyceride and cholesterol levels

  Treats digestive disorders such as indigestion, flatulence, diarrhea, and loss of appetite

  Aid in digestion by stimulating saliva and gastric juices

  Improves general circulation

Turmeric

New research at Oregon State University has discovered that curcumin, a compound found in the cooking spice turmeric, can cause a modest but measurable increase in levels of a protein that’s known to be important in the “innate” immune system, helping to prevent infection in humans and other animals.

1. It is a natural antiseptic and antibacterial agent, useful in disinfecting cuts and burns.

2. When combined with cauliflower, it has shown to prevent prostate cancer and stop the growth of existing prostate cancer.

3. Prevented breast cancer from spreading to the lungs in mice.

4. May prevent melanoma and cause existing melanoma cells to commit suicide.

5. Reduces the risk of childhood leukemia.

6. Is a natural liver detoxifier.

7. May prevent and slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease by removing amyloyd plaque buildup in the brain.

8. May prevent metastases from occurring in many different forms of cancer.

9. It is a potent natural anti-inflammatory that works as well as many anti-inflammatory drugs but without the side effects.

10. Has shown promise in slowing the progression of multiple sclerosis in mice.

11. Is a natural painkiller and cox-2 inhibitor.

12. May aid in fat metabolism and help in weight management.

13. Has long been used in Chinese medicine as a treatment for depression.

14. Because of its anti-inflammatory properties, it is a natural treatment for arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

15. Boosts the effects of chemo drug paclitaxel and reduces its side effects.

16. Promising studies are underway on the effects of turmeric on pancreatic cancer.

17. Studies are ongoing in the positive effects of turmeric on multiple myeloma.

18. Has been shown to stop the growth of new blood vessels in tumors.

19. Speeds up wound healing and assists in remodeling of damaged skin.

20. May help in the treatment of psoriasis and other inflammatory skin conditions.

Lilly livered? Nah

I just thought of leaving us with a little research project, "What Are the Uses of the Following?"
Get curious



Hot Chillies



Chocolates


Figs


Water Melon

Banana

Avocado


Shrimps


Ginger



Raisins


Mushrooms


Asparagus


Sweet Potatoes

Ratatouille

INGREDIENTS

Ingredients
2 large aubergines
4 small courgettes
2 red or yellow peppers
4 large ripe tomatoes
5 tbsp olive oil
supermarket pack or small bunch basil
1 medium onion , peeled and thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves , peeled and crushed
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp sugar





Cut the aubergines in half lengthways. Place them on the board, cut side down, slice in half lengthways again and then across into 1.5cm chunks. Cut off the courgettes ends, then across into 1.5cm slices. Peel the peppers from stalk to bottom. Hold upright, cut around the stalk, then cut into 3 pieces. Cut away any membrane, then chop into bite-size chunks.
Score a small cross on the base of each tomato, then put them into a heatproof bowl. Pour boiling water over the tomatoes, leave for 20 secs, then remove. Pour the water away, replace the tomatoes and cover with cold water. Leave to cool, then peel the skin away. Quarter the tomatoes, scrape away the seeds with a spoon, then roughly chop the flesh.
Set a sauté pan over medium heat and when hot, pour in 2 tbsp olive oil. Brown the aubergines for 5 mins on each side until the pieces are soft. Set them aside and fry the courgettes in another tbsp oil for 5 mins, until golden on both sides. Repeat with the peppers. Don't overcook the vegetables at this stage, as they have some more cooking left in the next step.
Tear up the basil leaves and set aside. Cook the onion in the pan for 5 mins. Add the garlic and fry for a further min. Stir in the vinegar and sugar, then tip in the tomatoes and half the basil. Return the vegetables to the pan with some salt and pepper and cook for 5 mins. Serve with basil (BBC)

The Best Taste Buds make the Best Cooks?

One of my best films is RATATOUILLE. 'Why should a full grown woman with grey hairs like cartoons' you may ask, but for me life is about the message not the medium. In my journey through life in the kitchen, there are two things I have discovered about good cooks; they either love food or have wonderful taste buds, could actually be both. Take the best cook in my home for instance, he'll always say "Mummy, I love food", and true to his words, when he has finished concocting a menu from my stew and soup pots I am almost tempted to ask him to share with me.

Taste buds contain the receptors for taste. They are located around the small structures on the upper surface of the tongue, soft palate, upper oesophagus and epiglottis, which are called papillae. These structures are involved in detecting the five (known) elements of taste perception: salty, sour, bitter, sweet, and umami. Via small openings in the tongue epithelium, called taste pores, parts of the food dissolved in saliva come into contact with taste receptors. Olfaction or olfactory perception is the sense of smell. In humans, olfaction occurs when odourant molecules bind to specific sites on the olfactory receptors which are used to detect the presence of smell. Olfaction, taste and trigeminal receptors (also called Chemesthesis) together contribute to flavor. The human tongue can distinguish only among five distinct qualities of taste, while the nose can distinguish among hundreds of substances, even in minute quantities. It is during exhalation that the olfaction contribution to flavor occurs, in contrast to that of proper smell, which occurs during the inhalation phase (wikipedia).

From the information above, we cannot over emphasise the use of the tongue and nose in our culinary abilities. Basically without them we would not be able to differentiate our herbs, spices and even salt. If you have a problem with either of the senses go get tested, we would not want to 'oversalt' or 'underflavour' our food now would we? 

Cheers! 

Food and the Man's Heart

It is popularly said that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, could it then be the reason for men's attachment to their mums? After all she has fed him from as long as he can remember. Then comes Cinderella who thinks Prince Charming should be hers and hers alone and 'boom' the war begins. Mother-in-law becomes a witch (she was not witch enough to have killed her son or stopped him from marrying you) and Mrs becomes 'that spoilt brat'.

However, if we are to be objective, I think if this two 'stomach queens' join forces they could make the best King ever out of our Prince. My husband has this nostalgia about aubergine

aubergine

and he would always remember the woman that cooked the best one he ever ate- his grandfather's wife Ashana. Unfortunately for me she's dead, but you see, if she were alive I would have packaged some from my present location to her and asked her to teach me just how she got to my husband's heart via that food.

I think  I would have done same with my mother-in-law too. What I am trying to say here, gals, is the kitchen                    

could heal and better any relationship. After all, Dr Leman says 'Sex begins in the kitchen'. Hey, I am a good girl (ask my husband), but truth be told. Cheers!" 

How to cook Rice and Beans

If you do not like beans when it is cooked alone like in Beans Porridge, then you need to try the rice and beans recipe.
How to cook Nigerian Rice & Beans [Video]
One way to reduce the flatulence or indigestion associated with beans is to cook it with another staple and the rice and beans recipe is one of such recipes.