Ghanaian Jollof Rice

Ghanaian Jollof Rice

The main ingredients of the dish are rice, tomatoes, and onions. The rest of the ingredients can vary greatly according to everyone’s taste. For example, vegetarians prefer to have the dish with mixed vegetables and without any meat products, while many other people prefer to have the dish with meat, chicken, turkey, or fish. For this recipe I have chosen to make it vegetarian with mixed vegetables and beans.

Ingredients:

3 large tomatoes

3 cloves of garlic (you can add more according to your choice)

2 large onions

A bit of fresh ginger, (like 2 cm long)

2 cups (800 grams) of basmati rice (long grain rice)

1 chilie (optional, you can add more according to your choice)

1 tablespoons of tomato paste

2 spoons of vegetable oil

Salt and ground black pepper (according to taste)

7 dl of water or stock (you can also add one or two stock cubes for a better seasoning)

300 gr mixed vegetables of soybeans, red beans, corn and carrots

Directions:

Rince the uncooked rice with cold water until the water is clear. Soak the rice in water for 30 minutes. Sift the rice and pour in a pan with water. Cook for 10 minutes in boiling water. The rice should be half cooked. Sift the rice again and rince under cold water.

Cut the tomatoes into big cubes and blend then using a blender, cut the garlic cloves into halves and press them, and then slice the rest of the onions into medium pieces. Cut the ginger in small pieces. In a non-stick pot, add the vegetable oil and heat it for 1-2 minutes. Add the onions to the pot and fry them until they become soft. Add the garlic cloves and ginger and fry all together with the onions for one more minute while stirring continuously, and then add the blended tomatoes, the water, the stock cube, salt, black pepper, the chilies, the tomato paste, and stir them all together. You should pay attention to the seasoning, as the rice will be cooked later in this mix. Cook on medium heat for 5-10 minutes until the mix starts boiling. After boiling I mix the sauce with a mixer/blender to get a smooth sauce.

You could continue to cook the rice in the pot but I do the rest in the oven. So place the rice in a baking tray. Add the mixed vegetables and beans and stir. Then add the sauce and stir so all mixes. Cover the baking tray with foil and then bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes on 200 degrees Celsius.

Take it out and stir all the rice around to see how far the cooking process has come. If it is still a bit moist and not cooked cover again and put it back in the oven for another 20 minutes.

Take it out again and see if it is ready. The rice should be soft and dry and not sticky.