NAIJA GOOD, Series 2: POPULAR NIGERIAN TRADITIONAL SWALLOW.

NAIJA GOOD, Series 2: POPULAR NIGERIAN TRADITIONAL SWALLOW

Eba!

Fufu!

Semo!

Pounded yam! (iyan!)

Amala! (Yam flour!)

I’m sure you know all these that i am screaming. These are Nigeria’s most famous food. They are loved by everyone, especially the elderly ones in Nigeria.

These are traditional foods and staples in Nigeria and are eaten by all age groups. Parents are known fans of swallowing and so they teach their children how to eat it, incorporating it into their menu from childhood, and because they are not chewed but swallowed a Nigerian baby begins the journey of having swallow as early as the age of 1/2 years old. Trust Nigeria mothers.

I have a funny childhood memory of my early method of eating these swallows; we were having eba for dinner. I can remember it was with okro soup, now instead of cutting the eba one at a time with my fingers before using it to fetch soup, i carried the whole eba on the plate, dipped it in the soup, bit off the part the soup touched and repeated the process till i finished the large ball of eba that I was served. It was watching my dad eat these swallows that really taught me how to eat it normally.

There are some stunts we see people perform when eating these swallows. They cut a morsel, roll and rematch it with their fingers, throw it up in the air and catch it before dipping it inside soup. I saw that in a Nigerian movie. Not real life, lol.

Though, some people use cutleries to eat it. We can all attest that using your hands, i mean your fingers to dig in neatly and largely is the perfect way to enjoy this Nigerian dish.

Of course, these swallows are not complete without their equally famous soups. Infact, they aren’t even eaten without a soup. But, this article is not about Nigerian famous soups. 

I will take us gradually on what these popular swallows are about.

EBA: This is simply made with hot water and cassava flakes(Garri). This mixture can be made in a bowl, though some stir it in a pot on fire(rare). Some put the garri before the water, some put the water before the garri.

However style is preferred, a white solid or yellow mould(depending on what color the cassava flakes is) is formed. It can be eaten with any soup. But, for me eba goes best with egusi soup.

FUFU: This is made from fermented cassava. It is usually a very long process, and that is why you can get a fufu from most shops around Nigeria because not everyone knows how to make it. After leaving it to ferment for 3-5 days which helps get rid of a particular smell, toxins and excess starch the water is drained out before stirring vigorously in a pot. Can be eaten with any soup. Preferably Egusi, or ogbono soup.

SEMO: This is powdered wheat that is made in Nigeria, or made with corn in Northern Nigeria. Called Tuwon Masara. It is also popularly made by the Golden Penny brand, a popular food brand in Nigeria. And, Supreme.

This is prepared by pouring an already mixed paste of the semo into a pot of boiling water, and then slowly pouring in the powdered semo into the boiling paste, stirring till it thickens. For me this is the most versatile of them all that can be enjoyed with any soup.

POUNDED YAM: Another stressful swallow to make. Yams are nicely cut and made to boil till it gets soft without adding salt, then poured into a mortar and continously pounded with a pestle till it becomes smooth and firm. Everyone goes crazy for this one, and because of the stressful process, it is made occasionally in Nigeria. Wives often prays that their husbands or mother-in-law don’t turn eating ponded-yam into a hubby, because it is not easy to pound.

Women that knows how to pound yam are often admired in Nigeria, it is everyone’s favourite swallow but it is not everyone’s niche. As a girl from Ondo state, the questions that follows upon mentioning what state I am from is if I know how to pound yam very well. The answer is…

Also, the Tivs.

Substitues have been made, in a powdered form to serve as pounded yam which eases the stress of pounding, but many Nigerian men will say that it does not taste the same as pounded yam. Luckily, there are yam pounding machines that mixes boiled yam smoothly and very firmly. Let’s see what our Nigerian men have got to say about this one now. This is the most versatile and enticing of all swallow, to be taken with any richly prepared soup.

AMALA: This is a popular swallow for the yorubas. It is dried yam, grinded into powder and mixed in hot water in a pot till it becomes firm. Many prefers it soft, “Amala feli feli”.

There is white amala, mustard coloured amala, brown/black amala which is the most famous of them all. Schooling in the north, i’ve gotten to see that the northeners loves amala too. There are many amala eateries everywhere in Kaduna and Abuja jam-packed with rich northeners choosing nothing but amala.

It is best eaten with a slimy/draw soup. Ogbono, okro, but when you think of amala, think of eating it with gbegiri(beans soup), ewedu, stew soup (obe ata) and fried fish.

TUWON SHIKAFA:  This is a northern swallow made with rice. The rice is grinded or blended, most times it is boiled until it becomes very soft then mashed and stirred so it becomes firm. It is never often smooth because of the rice texture. Enjoyed with Miyan Zogale, vegetable or a slimy soup.

There are many other swallows in Nigeria; they include brown wheat, made in powdered form. There is the plantain swallow, made from plantains into flour etc.These dishes are made smoothly with the famous turning stick, called “Omorogun” in Yoruba. These dishes are famous at Owa’mbes, and often seals the deal. There is actually no Owam’be without a famous morsel in it. In various occasions, like weddings, the soups and the swallows signifies what tribe the family are from and when you see AMALA and TUWON SHIKAFA in a wedding, know that 2 different ethnic groups have come together.

They are very filling and many husbands becomes happy whenever their wives makes any of the above for them. When you want to serve your husband, put the huge swallow(wrapped) and the soup in two separate plates, accompanied with “washing hand water” and drinking water. Then, ask for anything you want when he begins eating. Trust me.

You know, the road to a man’s heart is through his belly.

These dishes makes Nigeria stand out, and her people love it.

Hence, Naija Good.