Simple Vegetarian Jollof Rice
Easy jollof rice recipe that is flavourful, spicy and al-so-delicious
Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 2 large onions
- 1 thumb size ginger
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 1-2 scotch bonnet peppers
- 3 medium tomatoes
- 1 large red bell pepper
- 2 tbsp vegetable better than bouillon paste
- 2.5 cups long grain jasmin rice
- 1.5 cups water total (water used to blend the onion mixture, cook the stew and cook the rice)
- 1 small can of tomato paste ~1/2 cup of tomato paste
- 1/8 tsp baking soda optional but helpful for acidic tomatoes
Spices
- 1 tsp anise seeds
- 1 tsp coriander seeds
- 1 tsp fenugreek seeds
- 2 tsp curry powder
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 fresh sprig of rosemary
- 2 calabash nutmegs optional or sub with 1/4 tsp of nutmeg
Instructions
- Blend the tomatoes, scotch bonnet pepper and red bell pepper and cook in a separate pot at medium to high heat for at least 15 mins before you start prepping the rest of your ingredients. We want to give the tomatoes and peppers a cooking head start.
- In a separate pot, heat the oil at medium heat for a few minutes to warm up.
- Finely chop 1/2 an onion and saute in the hot oil till soft and translucent
- When the onion gets soft, mix in your curry powder. When it smells fragrant, add in your tomato paste and fry it in the oil for at least 5 minutes.
- As the tomato paste is cooking, blend the garlic, ginger and the rest of the onions with 1/4 cup of water till smooth.
- Add the onion, ginger, and garlic mixture into the pot and cook for about 5-10 minutes. The water from the onions will evaporate cooking down the onions.
- Once the onions have cooked down, your tomato and pepper purée would have decreased in water content significantly. Add the puree to the stew, mix it well and let it cook for about 5 minutes at medium-low heat. While everything is cooking, grind the whole spices (except the bay leaf) into a powder.
- After the 5 minutes, add in the whole spices, your better than bouillon paste and 3/4 cup of water and mix well. Cover the pot and let it cook at medium-low for about 15 minutes or until the oil in the stew starts to separate to the top, then you will know the stew is ready. It will be loose but also saucy.
- Taste the stew and make sure it tastes over-seasoned and over-salted. This is very important to ensure that the resulting jollof is not bland. Adjust the stew accordingly with more salt or bouillon cube/paste if needed.
- Give your rice a very good wash. Since this is jasmine rice you want to wash it well to remove excess starch that can make the rice sticky.
- Add in your washed jasmine rice and stir everything very well. Lower the heat to low, cover the pot and let the rice cook with the stew for 5 minutes.
- After the 5 minutes, you can add the rest of the water (about 1/2 cup) and mix it well. Sandwich a piece of parchment paper between the pot and the cover to trap steam in the rice and cook it well. Let the rice cook for about 15 minutes uninterrupted (i.e. do not open the pot).
- After 15 minutes, you will notice some water has settled at the top of the parchment paper, you can pour the water back into the pot and give the rice a very good mix to make sure it is not getting burnt. Then cover the pot again with the parchment paper and let the rice cook for another 20 minutes (uninterrupted) before checking the rice.
- After the 20 minutes have passed, check the rice to see if it is done. If it is still hard/not cooked, cover the pot and let the rice cook for another 5-10 mins till it is done.
- At this point, your jollof rice is ready. Serve with a side of protein and coleslaw and enjoy
Notes
If you do not have better than bouillon, you are welcome to use liquid veggie broth instead of water or any bouillon cube you might prefer.