How To Prepare Nigerian Tomato and Pepper Stew

Nigerian stew is quite different from other kinds of stew. There is something unique about the red attractive colour that makes it so appealing. The Nigerian stew is very versatile, as it can be taken with so many kinds of food. It is important to note that there is more to cooking this stew than just frying pepper and tomatoes.

In order to get your stew right, follow the directions below.

Ingredients for Stew

4-6 Large Tomatoes

4 Red Bell Peppers (Tatashe)

2 Green Bell Peppers

1 Large Onion

1-4 Scotch Bonnet peppers (Ata-rodo)

Meat or chicken

1 cup meat stock

Curry and Thyme to taste

1/3 cup of Oil

Seasoning cube

Salt

Direction or Making Stew

Cut up peppers, tomatoes and onions and  puree in a blender till you get smooth thick paste. Place on Low-Medium heat and boil for 10 – 15  minutes.

Pour boiled peppers into a strainer to remove any excess water. The resulting base will be thick and will require no further boiling.

Heat up the oil in a medium sized pot. When it is hot enough, pour in the pepper and allow to fry. Stir regularly so that it doesn’t burn.

After it has fired long enough and dry, add in the meat stock and meat or chicken. Also add in your seasoning cubes and curry and thyme.  Cover and leave to simmer for about 10 minutes.

Your stew is ready to serve with any dish of your choice.

Some people prefer to uses fried meat/chicken in their stew as this gives it a richer taste. Another important fact to note that Curry, thyme and other seasonings should be added in at the last stage of cooking, otherwise the flavours will get lost in the mix.

Other variations of the Nigerian stew include adding chopped pumpkin leaves, scent leaves or curry leaves. Another is made by adding chopped carrots, peppers and peas. You can also do make the chopped beef variation.

Nigerian stew can be taken with rice, while soups, cooked/boiled plantain, bread…. the list is endless.

Image Source:@fressiafoodies