Culinary Collage

When I first moved to New York City a few years ago, I had never even heard of jollof, much less tasted it. My first encounter with this amazing rice dish transpired at Teranga, a local restaurant in Midtown that introduced me to an array of amazing West African cuisines including the authentic jollof rice that inspired the creation of this fusion recipe. The acidity of the tomato and the warming spices in the fragrant rice cut through the rich creaminess of the soup to create a perfectly balanced, cozy meal that is worth the effort! As written, this recipe offers a tinge of heat but can easily be adjusted to your spice preferences. 

Jollof Rice Ingredients:

• Salt or smoked salt to taste
• 3/4 cup wild rice (rinsed until water runs clear) (or about 6 oz.) 
• 1 small Roma tomato (or 2/3 of a large one).
• 1–2 tablespoons chopped white onion.
• 1.5 tablespoons chopped red bell pepper.
• ⅓ roasted red poblano pepper (if desired)
• 1/3 hot pepper like habanero or scotch (if desired) 
• 1 tablespoon water (if needed for the vegetable puree)
• 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil, olive oil, or ghee
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste.
• 1.5 tablespoons plain tomato sauce.
• 1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon chicken stock (preferably homemade)  
• 1/2 a Maggi or bouillon cube (crushed).
• 1/4 teaspoon curry powder.
• 1/4 teaspoon white pepper.
• 1 pinch of dried thyme.
• Optional: ¼ tsp. Freshly grated ginger 
• 1 bay leaf.
• Salt or smoked salt to taste

Soup Base Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup chopped yellow onion
• 1 medium carrot
• ½ cup of fresh green beans, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 7 Tbsp butter, sliced into single tablespoons
• 1 large garlic clove, minced (1 1/2 tsp)
• 4 1/2 cups of chicken broth or chicken stock
• ½ tsp of each dried thyme and ½ tsp of dried marjoram
• Salt and ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts halves
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• Salt or smoked salt to taste

Instructions:

To prepare the jollof rice, puree the Roma tomato, chopped white onion, and peppers until smooth, adding water if needed. In a medium pot, add oil or ghee, the vegetable puree, the tomato sauce, and the tomato paste. Stir constantly over medium-low heat for approximately 6 to 8 minutes until the mixture is thoroughly cooked through and thickened. Incorporate the stock, crushed Maggi cube, curry powder, white pepper, thyme, bay leaf piece, and salt to taste until the jollof base is heated through. Pour the wild rice into to the pot and stir until fully combined. Cover the pot with a lid and turn heat to high until the rice mixture comes to a slight boil. As soon as it comes to a slight boil, turn heat very low to simmer for 15-20 minutes. While the rice is steaming, melt 1 Tbsp butter over medium heat in a large pot. For approximately 4 1/2 minutes, saute onion, carrots and green beans, adding minced garlic during the last 30 seconds. Add chicken broth, herbs, salt, black pepper to taste. Add chicken and bring the mixture to a boil over medium high heat and then cover the pot with a lid and reduce to medium low, allowing the chicken to simmer for 13 to 15 minutes and rotating the chicken breasts if necessary for even cooking and broth immersion. Decrease the temperature to low heat and take the chicken breasts out of the broth, setting aside to cool. Turn the heat off of the jollof rice pot and allow rice to cool while preparing the creamy chicken soup base. Over medium heat, melt the remaining butter in a medium sauce pan. Whisk in the flour until cooked through (approximately 1-2 minutes). Once the flour is cooked through, slow pour the milk and heavy cream into the mixture until some of the liquid starts to evaporate and the mixture becomes thicker. Add the cream mixture, cooled shredded chicken, and jollof rice to the warm broth. Stir until fully combined and turn off heat. Allow soup to cool slightly before serving. Enjoy!