Nothing unites people quite like food. To celebrate the black men and women who are using food to connect cultures and communities, we’re sharing some of our favorite recipes from chefs, at-home cooks, and food lovers who know that great flavors can bring us all together. Akudo Agokei (@rad_economist) is a self-taught chef from Nigeria who now resides in the UK, and here he shares one of his recipes for Nigerian fried rice.
WHAT YOU’LL NEED
- 2 cups of rice
- 1/2 liter of chicken stock
- 1/3 cup diced carrots
- 1/4 diced onion
- 1/3 green peas
- 1 cup prawns
- 1/3 cup cooked and diced kidney
- salt
- 2 maggi bouillon cubes
- 1 tbsp curry
- 1 tsp. chili powder
- 1 tsp. dried thyme
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INSTRUCTIONS
1). Wash your rice at least twice. If you don’t, the starch will mix with the stock and weaken it, and when I say wash, I mean SCRUB BETWEEN YA PALMS!
2). Put your rice in a pot, and add the stock, then start cooking, if not enough, supplement with a little bit of water and once it starts to boil, reduce the heat to low and cover and let steam until done, cover with the pot with foil paper to allow for proper steaming. Rice should not be left to boil, it should be steamed, that is how you come out with fluffy non-sticky rice every time.
3). Fry your fried rice mix. Fry the prawns first, season with a bit of salt and pinch of black pepper, then set aside. Clear pot/pan of any liquid in there (i.e if there is a mixture of water and oil from the frying of the prawns), if no liquid but just oil, then leave in, and use to fry the veggies next (onions, peas, and carrots), and season with salt and peppers. Frying of each ingredient should only be for about 3 minutes.
4). Clean your kidney. Dice it and fry for about 3 minutes.
5). Now mix your kidney, veggies, and prawns into a hot pan with about 90ml of oil and fry. Add your thyme, sea salt, curry, maggi cubes and chili powder. Fry for 5 minutes.
6). Mix with your rice, and fry the rice while continuously mixing. Leave to sit for 5-10 minutes. Then serve and enjoy. Fry your chicken in oil and serve with the rice.