Nigerian Cuisine

Nigerian cuisine comprises a diverse range of cooking practices from Nigeria, a country located in West Africa. It is based on seafood, root vegetables such as cassava and yam, grains, palm oil, and spices. Dishes typically consist of a starchy staple food (eaten by hand) accompanied by a sauce or soup.

Nigeria is a country of many ethnic groups, so cooking varies significantly from region to region. The north, where Hausa and Fulani peoples predominate, is known for grilled meat and seafood; the Yoruba west is known for jollof rice and grain-based dishes; the Igbo east features heavily spiced soups and yam.

Staple Ingredients

Cassava is processed into flour and fufu. Yam is boiled, roasted, or pounded to make pounded yam. Rice, sorghum and millet, and legumes are also common. Red palm oil flavors many sauces with color and taste. Scotch bonnet peppers, other hot peppers, and tomatoes form the base of seasoning.

Signature Dishes

Jollof rice is rice cooked with tomatoes, peppers, and onions, eaten across many West African countries. Egusi is a soup made from ground melon seeds mixed with leafy greens and meat or fish. Suya is grilled meat seasoned with ground peanuts and spices. Pounded yam with leafy green soup is also common. Moi moi and akara are dishes made from ground legumes.

Eating Customs

The typical method is to take a portion of starchy staple (fufu, flour paste, amala, or pounded yam) by hand and dip it in sauce. Breakfast at home often includes pap (a grain porridge), akara, or moi moi. For community occasions such as weddings and celebrations, jollof rice and abundant meat are customary.