Cooking in the Thatchroom by Danielle Moody

Compiled by Danielle Moody

Introduction The Granny Project, is proud to present Cooking in the Thatchroom. In The Granny Project’s effort to preserve traditional African cuisine, these recipes have been collected from various countries throughout Africa. “Thatchroom” is the roof of a hut in Africa. Cooking in the Thatchroom, is perfect for those new to the African cuisine.The book includes 18 recipes collected from all over Africa. Let this book be your introduction to African cuisine. Welcome to the Thatchroom!!!

Danielle Moody | FA 2010 | GD 231

Table of Contents Introduction i Entrees Jollof Chicken and Rice Bourek Yassa Bobotee Grannat Chop Nkrakra

4 5 6 7 8 9

Sides Irio Mtuzi Wa Samki Sweet Pea Soup Greans in Peanut Sauce

12 13 14 15

Breads Coconut Bread Honey Bread Injera Mbatata

18 19 20 21

Desserts

Golden Plantain Cakes Chin Chin Puff Puff Pumpkin Cake

Colophon Danielle Moody | FA 2010 | GD 231

24 25 26 27 21

EntrĂŠes

Jollof Chicken and Rice

Ingredients

3 2 1 16 1¼ 1 ½

lbs chicken pieces tbsp oil chopped medium onion oz canned tomatoes cups chicken broth bay leaf tsp ground ginger

½ ½ ½ ¼ 1 1

Based on rice, tomatoes — and usually meat or fish, it is believed by some to be the origin of jambalaya.

tsp cinnamon tsp thyme—crushed tsp salt tsp ground red pepper cup long grain rice tbsp chopped parsley

a traditional Algerian recipe for a classic dish of phyllo pastry filled with a Bourek —is minced beef and onion mix that's rolled and fried until golden.

Ingredients

¼ ¼ ½ ½ ¼ 1

cup vegetable oil cup chopped onion lb ground beef tsp salt; or to taste tbsp lack pepper egg; beaten

Directions

In a large skillet brown chicken on both sides in hot oil about 15 minutes; remove from skillet. Set aside chicken, reserving drippings.

Add the onion to drippings; cook till tender but not brown. Drain off fat. Return chicken to skillet.

Combine undrained tomatoes, broth, and seasonings. Pour over chicken. Do not stir.

Bring to boiling; reduce heat.

Cover; simmer for 30 minutes. Skim off fat. Add rice, making sure all the rice is covered with liquid. Cover; simmer for 30 min utes more or until rice is tender. Sprinkle with parsley.

Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a skillet, add the onion and stir-fry over moderate heat for 2 minutes. Add the beef, salt and pepper and stir-fry for 5 minutes. Add the egg and parsley and fry for 1 minute more. Cool well.

Take 1 phyllo sheet and spread it out flat with a short end nearest you. Place 2 heaping tablespoons of the beef mixture 2 inches in from the short edge. Fold both long sides in toward the middle, beginning with the short end roll the phyllo to shape a packet 4 inches long and 1 ½ inches wide. Repeat with all the remaining phyllo sheets and stuffing. Set aside.

Put the balance of the oil in a skil let over moderate/low heat and add the rolls. Brown on both sides for about 3 minutes; the low heat

2 tbsp flat leaf parsley(chopped) 6 phyllo sheet; 12" x17" ea lemon wedges for serving

prevents the very thin pastry sheets from burning. Drain the rolls on paper towels for a minute. Serve warm with a squeeze of lemon.

Yassa hot chilli sauce.

Bobotee

Ingredients

6 ¼ 1 ½ 1 4 4 1½

—is a traditional Senegalese recipe for a classic stew of fried chicken in a vinegar and

cups sliced onion cup fresh lemon juice tsp salt tsp black pepper seeded & minced jalapeño pepper skinned chicken breast halves skinned chicken leg quarters Cooking spray tbsp peanut oil

Directions

Combine first 5 ingredients; divide evenly between 2 (1gal.) heavyduty zip-top plastic bags. Divide chicken evenly between bags; seal bags.Toss each bag well to coat. Refrigerate 3 hours, turning bags occasionally. Preheat broiler. Remove chicken from bags, reserving marinade. Place chicken on broiler rack coated with cooking spray. Broil 6 minutes on each side or until lightly browned. Strain marinade through a colander over a bowl, reserving mari nade and onion. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion to pan; sauté 5 minutes. Add reserved marinade; bring to a boil. Cook 1 minute; add chicken, carrot, broth, olives, water, mustard, and Scotch

2 2 1 3 3 ½ 1 10 3

—This South African original is similar to meatloaf. It makes a pleasingly spiced slightly sweet dish, with a very light curry flavor.

lb ground beef  thick slices white bread  cup milk  chopped onions  tbsp curry powder (or paste) tsp sugar lemon juice slivered almonds eggs

Directions

bonnet pepper. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 1 hour or until chicken is done. Discard Scotch bonnet. Serve over rice.

Preheat oven to 350° F. Grind meat coarsely. Soak bread in milk. Squeeze until dry; retain milk.

Sauté onions in butter. Add curry powder and continue to sauté 1 minute. Add meat, sugar, salt, lemon juice, and almonds. Beat eggs; add half to meat mixture. Whisk other half into milk.Thoroughly mix bread into meat mixture; add stock.

Put meat mixture into greased oven proof dish; smooth top. Pour egg mixture over; top with bay leaves. Cook in oven 30 minutes or until set. Remove from oven. Serve with plain boiled rice.

½ cup strong beef stock  2 bay leaves  ½ cup chopped parsley salt butter

Grannat Chop

—is a traditional Sierra Leonian recipe for a spicy stew of chicken, tomatoes and chillies in a peanut butter sauce that's traditionally garnished with hard-boiled eggs.

3 lbs chicken(in large pieces) 3 tbsp polive oil 3 chopped onion 6 chopped jalapeno 1 can chopped tomatoes 2 cups chicken stock 1 cup peanut butter 1 can tomato paste 1 tsp salt

—is a traditional Ghanaian recipe for a classic stew of beef, squash and butter

Ingredients

Nkrakra beans in a tomato and hot chilli sauce..

pepper (to taste) ½ tsp thyme 6 hard-boiled egg —optional ¼ cup chopped parsley

1½ 2 2 ¼ ¼ 1½

lbs beef boneless chuck (tip or round cut into ¾-inch cubes)  cups water  tps salt  tps ground ginger  tps ground red pepper  lbs Hubbard squash (pared and cut into 1-inch cubes)

Directions

1 2

Heat beef, water, salt, ginger and red pepper to boiling in Dutch oven; reduce heat. Cover and simmer 1 ½ hours.

Add squash; cover and cook until beef and squash are tender, 30 to 45 minutes.

Remove squash; mash or puree in blender. Return squash to the Dutch oven.

Add tomatoes and beans. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer until beans are tender, about 15 minutes.

Sauté chicken in oil until browned. Re-move and set aside. Add onions and jalapenos. Sauté until onion is soft. Add tomatoes, chicken and broth. Bring to a boil.

Add peanut butter, salt and pepper. Stir until well blended. Add thyme and simmer for 30 minutes.

Serve chicken over rice, garnished with eggs and sprinkled with parsley.

2 1

tomatoes, chopped  package frozen baby lima beans

Sides

Irio

—a mixture of mashed potatoes and corn (maize), is a traditional dish among the Kikuyu people of Kenya.

Ingredients

1 cup dried peas 4 potatoes 6 ears of fresh corn, (removed from the cob) ½ lb greens or spinach black pepper, salt

Mtuzi Wa Samaki Ingredients

chopped fried onion (optional) lima beans (optional)

1 sliced large onion 2 chopped cloves garlic 2 seeded & chopped jalapeno peppers 2 tbsp vegetable oil 16 oz drained & chopped whole tomatoes 2 tbsp vinegar  1 ¼ tsp ground cumin  ¾ tsp ground coriander

Directions

Boil dried peas until nearly tender. Drain off extra water. (Or start with canned peas.)

Add potatoes, corn, and greens, and optional ingredients.There should be just enough water to allow vegetables to steam cook. Simmer until tender. Mash with a potato masher until smooth and thick.

Cook and stir onion, garlic and peppers in oil in 10" over medium heat until onion is tender. Reduce heat; stir in remaining ingredients except fish.

Cook uncovered over low heat, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes.  Arrange fish in ungreased 12" x 7" baking dish. Spoon tomato mixture over fish.

Bake uncovered at 355°F until fish flakes easily with fork (25 – 30 minutes). Sprinkle with snipped fresh cilantro if desired.

Serve hot. Roasted or grilled beef steak (or other meat) with gravy is often served with Irio; this is called Nyama na Irio (Meat and Irio).To prepare Nyama na Irio: Place a large mound of Irio on each plate, and use a spoon to make a hole in the center of the mound. Fill the hole with the meat (which should be cut into bite-sized pieces after it is cooked), and cover this with gravy. Leftover irio can be formed into patties and fried in hot oil.

—is a tasty fish curry dish that originated on the tiny island of Zanzibar.

½ tsp salt  4 halibut steaks, 1" thick snipped fresh cilantro

Sweet Pea Soup

—This rich, spicy soup is typical of Indian fare in East and South Africa.There is a large Indian population in Nairobi, capital of Kenya.

2 2 1 1 ¼ 1 1 2 1

cupschopped onion tsp minced garlic tsp grated fresh peeled ginger tsp salt tsp cayenne pepper tbsp homemade garam masala, tsp turmeric chopped tomatoes diced sweet potato

—This recipe is found all over

nut, or peanut, sauce.

Ingredients

and Southern Africa, Greens in Peanut Sauce Central combines greens with ground-

Ingredients

3½ cups water 3 cups fresh green peas

Homemade Garam Masala can be substuted with the following: 1 tsp ground black pepper 1 tsp ground coriander seeds 1 tsp ground cumin seeds ¼ tsp ground cardamom ¼ tsp ground cloves ¼ tsp cinnamon

2 lbs cassava leaves collards, kale, turnip greens or similar (cleaned, stems removed; and shredded, or pounded in a mortar with a pestle) 1 chopped ripe tomato 1 finely chopped onion ½ cup peanut butter (or peanuts)

Directions

Braise or deglaze onions and garlic in a pot for 5–10 minutes. Mix in the ginger, salt, and all spices and cook for a few minutes, stirring often. Add tomatoes and sweet potato, stir. Add 1 ½ cups of water, stir.  Bring soup to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes.

Add 2 cups of the peas and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and add remaining 2 cups of water.

Puree in batches in a blender until smooth. Return to the pot, add the last cup of peas, and cook on medium heat for 3–5 minutes.

If you are using peanuts (instead of peanut butter), make your own homemade peanut paste: Remove the peanuts’ shells, roast the peanuts on a baking sheet in a hot oven, or in a large skillet on the stove, stirring often, then remove the skins. Place the peanuts in a saucepan, add a few tablespoons of water to par tially cover them and bring to a slow boil, stirring often. Reduce heat. Crush peanuts with a potato-masher.

In a large pot bring two cups of water to a boil. Add greens. Cover and cook on high heat for ten minutes, stirring often.

Reduce heat. Remove most of the liquid from the pot and save half of it. Add tomatoes and onion to the greens, stir and simmer for ten minutes or more.

salt (to taste) black pepper (to taste) cayenne pepper (to taste)

In a bowl combine the peanut butter with enough of liquid from the cooking pot to be mixed until smooth.

Add peanut butter mixture to greens. Season to taste. Simmer on very low heat until greens are tender.

Breads

Coconut Bread

—is a traditional West African favorite.This recipe, which is similar to shortbread but with a coconut filling, is made the Liberian way.

frozen grated coconut water margarine evaporated milk sugar salt nutmeg coconut essence vanilla essence

Bread Dough 4½ cups 4 tsp ½ tsp 1¼ cups ½ cup 1 ¼ cups

all-purpose flour baking powder salt margarine sugar milk

Directions Filling Defrost coconut by setting at room temperature or microwaving for a minute or two. Place coconut along with other ingredients in a deep pot. Bring mixture to a boil on medium high. Reduce heat to medium and cook until most of the water is gone. Stir frequently so that the coconut does not stick to the bottom of the pan. Coconut should be moist, not dry. When done, set aside and allow to cool. Bread Dough Measure out and combine 4 cups of flour, salt, and baking powder in a mixing bowl. Use a fork to cut the butter into the flour. Cut and mix until the small pieces of butter are more or less spread out in the flour. Stir sugar in milk. Pour sweetened milk into flour mixture. Fold milk into flour evenly. Use your hands to gather dough into a ball. Dough will be sticky so you will have to use some of the extra flour. Place on lightly floured surface.

—a sweet butter-and-milk-enriched yeast bread from Ethiopia. Spiced with cloves, cinnamon, and ginger and an entire tablespoon of ground coriander

Ingredients

Ingredients Filling 1 lb. 2 cups 2 tbsp 5 oz. ¾ cup ½ tsp ¼ tsp ½ tsp ½ tsp

Honey Bread

1 1 4½ 1 ½ ¼ 6 1

pkt active dry yeast egg cups all-purpose flour cup lukewarm milk cup honey cup lukewarm water tbsp unsalted butter, melted tbsp ground coriander

1½ tsp salt ½ tsp ground cinnamon ¼ tsp ground cloves

Directions Coconut Bread Divide the dough into two. Use a floured rolling pin to flatten each piece of dough into a 14" x 9" rectangle. Grease and flour a 13" x 8" pan. Place one of the rectangles into the baking pan. Spoon the cooled coconut mixture on the rectangle in the pan and spread evenly with a knife. Cover the coconut with the second piece of rectangle. Seal the filling by pinching the two layers of dough together around the edges. Bake at 350° F for 30–35 minutes or until the coconut bread is golden brown.

In a small, shallow bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the lukewarm water. Let the mixture stand for 2–3 minutes and then stir to dissolve the yeast completely. Set the bowl in a warm, draft-free place until the yeast bubbles up and the mixture almost doubles in volume. Combine the egg, honey, coriander, cinnamon, cloves and salt in a deep bowl.

Add the yeast mixture, milk and 4 tablespoons of the melted butter. Beat until well blended.

Stir in the flour, ½ a cup at a time, using only as much as is necessary to make a dough that can be gathered into a soft ball. On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough. Continue kneading until the dough is smooth. Shape the dough into a ball and place it in a large, lightly buttered bowl until the dough rises and doubles.

With a pastry brush, spread the remaining melted butter evenly over the bottom and sides of a 3 quart soufflé dish or other round 3 quart baking dish at least 3" deep.

Punch the dough down with a single blow of your fist, and then knead it again for 1–2 minutes. Shape the dough roughly into a round and place it in the buttered baking dish, pressing it down into the corners so that it covers the bottom of the dish.

Return the dough to the warm, draft free place until it has doubled in bulk and risen at least as high as the top rim of the dish. Pre-heat the oven to 300° F. Bake the bread in the middle of the oven for 50–60 minutes, until light golden brown.

Injera spongy, sour flatbread is used to scoop up meat and vegetable stews.

Mbatata

¼ cup teff flour  ¾ cup all-purpose flour   1 cup water  a pinch of salt  peanut or vegetable oil

10 4 4 1¾ 2 4

Directions

Put the teff flour in the bottom of a mixing bowl, and sift in the allpurpose flour. Slowly add the water, stirring to avoid lumps. Stir in the salt.

Heat a nonstick pan or lightly oiled cast-iron skillet until a water drop dances on the surface. Make sure the surface of the pan is smooth Otherwise, your injera might fall apart when you try to remove it.

Mix together the sweet potatoes, milk and melted margarine or butter. Beat well to incorporate then sift in the remaining ingredients and stir to mix.Turn the resultant dough (which should be quite stiff) onto a floured surface and knead lightly be fore rolling out to about 1½ cm thick.

Cut into biscuits either with a biscuit cutter or a knife (whatever shape takes your fancy). Place each individual biscuit on a greased baking tray and bake in an oven pre-heated to 375°F for about 15 minutes, or until the biscuits are thoroughly cooked and nicely covered. Sprinkle the tops of the biscuits with a mix of cinnamon and sugar and allow to cool completely before eating.

—is not only a kind of bread;it’s also an eating utensil. In Ethiopia and Eritrea, this

Ingredients

Coat the pan with a thin layer of bat ter. Injera should be thicker than a crêpe, but not as thick as a traditional pancake. It will rise slightly when hot.

Cook until holes appear on the surface of the bread. Once the surface is dry, remove the bread from the pan and let it cool.

—is a traditional Malawi recipe for a variant form of the classic biscuit (cookie) made with mashed sweet potatoes and flavored with cinnamon.

tbsp mashed sweet potatoes  tbsp whole milk  tbsp melted margarine sifted flour  tsp baking powder  tbsp sugar

½ tsp salt  ¼ tsp powdered cinnamon

Desserts

Tatale

—are plantain cakes with onion and spices, fried to a golden crispiness.This dish is a specialty of Ghana, and makes a delicious snack or side dish.

Ingredients

Directions

Peel plantains, following the method above. Slice into pieces 2" or so, and then mash in a large bowl, using a potato masher.You can also pulse them in the food processor until they are ground up but not completely pureed.Add the onions, ginger, red pepper, salt and cornmeal to the plantain and mix well. In a larger bowl, toss the plantain pieces with the lemon juice. Add spice mixture and toss to coat. Heat oil in a heavy (cast iron is good) skillet, at least 10 ½ inch.You can drop a small piece of plantain in the oil to check the hotness. When the plan tain sizzles, oil is ready.

—is a much loved West African pastry that serves as a snack, dessert, or “street food.”

Ingredients

2 ripe plantains 1 onion,minced ½ tsp ground ginger ½ tsp ground red pepper ½ tsp salt ¾ cup yellow cornmeal 6 tbsp vegetable oil

Chin Chin

cups all-purpose flour large eggs tbsp I Cant Believe Its Not Butter® cup water tbsp salt tsp baking powder tsp nutmeg

1¼ cups sugar ½ gal canola oil

Heat up the oil for 20 minutes. When you are ready to fry lower the heat to low for 5 minutes so that the cookies don’t burn. Mix the dry ingredients. Sift the flour with the baking powder, salt, and nutmeg in a large bowl. Add the sugar to the flour and mix well. Add the butter to the flour and mix well until the butter is well incorporated with the flour.

or any container to cover the dough so it does not dry on the surface.

5 3 9 ¼ 1 ½ ¼

Directions

Form golf ball-sized pieces of the plantain mixture into patties, and drop into hot oil. Fry on both sides until golden brown.

In a separate bowl whisk the eggs with the water; add it to the flour mixture. Knead it well for 1 minute until it forms a nice smooth ball. It is important to put the dough in the fridge for 30 minutes before you start to shape them.

Shape the dough into a round ball and cut it into 4 equal parts. When they are cool, start out with 1 part and leave the others in the fridge to continue cooling. Put cling wrap

To roll the dough, use hands to shape it to a rectangle. Pour a small amount of flour on a board and some more over a rolling pin, and some on a any long knife. Roll the dough thinner ¼ inch thick by ½ inch width.Then cut each strip into squares.

Preheat the oil and reduce it to low for 5 minutes when ready to fry. If the chin chin gets brown right away then the chin chin has burned and did not cook properly. Lower the heat and wait 3 minutes before you attempt to fry again. It should take about 3–4 minutes to cook right. When frying increase the heat to high.Then lower the heat for 3 min utes before the next batch of cookies to fry.

Puff Puff

—is a traditional Nigerian recipe for a deep fried yeast-based doughnut.

Pumpkin Cake

Ingredients

4 cups warm water 2¼ oz. active dry yeast 6 cups bread flour 2 tbsp sugar 1¼ cups sugar 1 tbsp salt 1 tbsp vanilla extract ½ gal canola oil

Directions

Add 2 tablespoon of sugar and the yeast to the water. Use a whisk to dissolve the mixture for about 2 minutes. Let the mixture sit for 7 minutes until it starts to bubble. Turn the mixture to a big bowl and add the remaining sugar, salt, and vanilla extract and mix well . Sift the 6 cups of flour into the mixture and mix well with a whisk or a wooden spoon.Then begin to mix the mixture with your hand until all the bumps are smooth. Mix for about 4 minutes.

When the mixture is smooth, cover with seran wrap and leave it at a warm area to rise for about an hour an hour and a half. Heat up the oil in a pot at medium heat for 15 minutes.

When ready to fry the puff puff lower the heat for a minute.The puff

—is a traditional Liberian recipe for a classic sponge cake flavored and moistened with cooked pumpkin, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg.

½ cup butter 1 ¼ cups sugar 2 eggs 2 cups flour 3 tsp baking powder ½ tsp cinnamon ½ tsp ground ginger ½ tsp nutmeg ½ tsp salt

Directions

puff mixture should have risen. Grab small amount of the mixture with your hand and squeeze small balls through your thumb and index finger or use a small ice cream scoop The balls should rise to the top of the oil quickly. Raise the oil temperature so that the balls can brown.You want to cook these balls for about 3 minutes each. Remember to lower the oil temperature between each fry. Also turn them around frequently so they brown all over.

Drain them on a paper towel and leave to cool for 30 minutes before serving.

1 2 3 4

Stir together sugar and butter. Add eggs and mix well.

Mix dry ingredients in separate bowl.

Mix pumpkin, club soda and milk in third bowl.

Add bowl #2 to bowl #3 blend well. Then add this mixture to bowl 1, blend well. Add nuts if using.

Pour into greased baking pan 9" by 13". Bake at 350°F for 25 minutes.

1 ¾ ½ ½

can pumpkin cup milk tsp club soda cup chopped pecans (optional)

Colophon All content was gathered and edited by Danielle Moody. Recipes were found via the internet. See below for individual websites.The fonts used in this book are Garamond and Pea C-Squared. All patterns used were original patterns designed by Moody. Photos of the dishes were found on Flickr and rights belong to the following people: Recipe Photo— in order of appearance Bourek—Warda| 64sq ft kitchen Yassa—Rachelleb Nkrakra—Dinner Diary Mtuzi Wa Samaki—Kanawinkie Sweet Pea Soup—Compassionate Injera—Duxyak Puff Puff—Egsean Recipe website—in order of appearance http://www.astray.com/recipes/?show=Bourek%20(beef-stuffed%20pastry%20rolls) http://www.food.com/recipe/jollof-chicken-and-rice-172926 http://www.recipegoldmine.com/worldafrica/nkrakra.html http://congocookbook.com/vegetable_and_side_dish_recipes/iri http://www.timesoftheinternet.com/cooking-recipes/fish-baked-with-tomatoes-and-spices---mtuzi-wasamaki.html http://www.ivu.org/recipes/african/east-j.html http://www.africanchop.com/chopwa.htm#liberia http://africhef.com/HONEY-BREAD.html http://www.africanchop.com/tatale.htm http://www.food.com/recipe/chin-chin-385472 http://www.food.com/recipe/puff-puff-415720