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The Global Kitchen

Vegetable-Yam Porridge with Fish

You probably have heard of the Chinese, French and Italian cuisines. These have been made famous by celebrity chefs in America and elsewhere. Beginning from this article, the Minorities Global Village will, from time to time, bring you recipes and information on cooking methods from other regions or countries.

Our current recipe for a dish of yam porridge comes from Nigeria. It is an easy dish to prepare and makes a simple meal enjoyed by every Nigerian.

The yam is a Nigerian food staple grown throughout the West African region. It is also cultivated and eaten extensively in the Caribbean. Yams are delicious to eat. They are richer and more robust in taste than potatoes. It takes a little longer to cook yams and, when properly done, they are firmer and denser than potatoes. The firmness and density make yams more agreeable as a food item, in our opinion.

Yams come in three main varieties: the standard white yam which is more abundant and popular; the yellow yam (Oku in Igbo) which has a lovely sweet taste when roasted; and the softer, more fibrous white variety (mbala in Igbo) is used in some specialty cooking.

There are different ways to prepare the African yam. Our recipe uses the standard white yam. Everything you need for this recipe can be bought at the local African food store.

Nigerian Recipes:

Vegetable-Yam Porridge with Fish

Main Ingredients:
(1) African Yam -- 1kg (makes serving for six adults)
(2) Green vegetables -- 5g (spinach or other - 12 stems)
(3) Plantain (one) -- (slightly ripened)
(4) Palm oil -- 10ml (2 cooking spoonfuls)
(5) Smoked Fish -- 20g (1 large or 2 small)
(6) Cray fish -- 10g (1 cup)
(7) Fresh Fish -- 400g (Cod or salmon)
(8) Onions -- 20g (One whole bulb)

Spices:
(9) Fresh Hot Peppers -- 3g (8)
(10) Black Pepper -- 2mg (2 teaspoons)
(11) Ginger -- 4g (2 teaspoon powder or fresh)
(12) Uzuza leaves (5 fresh leaves)
(13) Salt -- (to taste)
(14) Curry powder -- 2g (1 teaspoon full)

The Preparation:

• Cut yams into about two inch rounds and peel the skin of each round. Further cut the rounds through the center into approximately 3 inch squares. Wash yam squares and set aside.
• Peel the plantain and dice into half inch cubes. Set aside.
• Peel and chop onion into small bits and mix with crayfish in a bender or small mortar. Reduce the crayfish and onion mixture to coarse paste. Set aside.
• Remove stalks, if any, from the fresh hot peppers and wash the peppers. Reduce peppers to a fine paste or puree.
• Cut the fresh fish into inch-thick stakes. Wash and season with ginger, curry powder, black pepper and salt, and set aside.
• Breakup the smoked fish into large chunks and Wash in hot (boiled) water to remove sand and other debris. Set aside.
• Pluck the vegetables from their stalks, discarding dead and wilted sections. Fold the plucked leaves into a pile and using a knife slice the leaves into thin strips. Set aside.

The Cooking:

Fresh Fish
Place the fresh fish stakes in a steamer or cooking pot with a thin layer of water and bring to a boil. Cook until just done (about 3 minutes) and transfer stakes into an aluminum-covered baking pan. Insert into pre-heated oven at 250 for 30 minutes.

White Yams
Put the washed yam squares in a large cooking pot and add 1.5 litres of water. Place the pot on the stove at high heat.

To the yam cooking pot add:
-- 1 teaspoon of black pepper
-- 1 teaspoon of table salt
-- 2 ladles (10ml) of palm oil

Bring the pot, now containing water, yams, salt, pepper and oil, to a boil.

As soon as the pot starts boiling, stir in the onion and crayfish paste. Add the chunks of smoked fish and cover. Add fresh hot pepper to taste.

Let boil for 3 minutes and then add the diced plantains and the 5 uzuza spice leaves; stir briefly and cover.

After about another 5 minutes of boiling, the porridge should begin to thicken. As soon as it starts to thicken, reduce heat by half and add the green vegetables. Stir, cover and cook for additional three minutes, then turn off heat.

Serve with steamed fish. Should make a filling delicious meal for six.