The aroma of spices and grains spread throughout the household. They both are reminded of their childhood memories as they consume the assortment of Nigerian food. Juniors Nicholle Igbinyemi and Susan Olayinka are both from Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria, and they share a love for their culture and its food. In another household, junior Ana Sandoval glances at the stove every few seconds to make sure nothing gets burned. The timer goes off and she places her dish onto the plate, ready to eat.

Olayinka made a dish called efo, which she said is a spinach soup that can include any ingredients desired to make a unique dish. Igbinyemi brought eba, which she said is comparable to mashed potatoes but firmer.

“[Eba is] basically a grain called gari and you add hot water to it and it becomes thick,” Igbinyemi said.

Olayinka said that some other popular dishes from Nigerian culture include fried rice, fufu, meat pie, and puff puff. Igbinyemi also said that these dishes are tasty.

“It might not look appetizing but it’s really good,” Igbinyemi said. “Sometimes, it can be really spicy.”

Sandoval is from Mexico and has lived in America for 15 years. She made sopes, a Mexican dish that is prepared using corn flour, beans and cheese. She prepares the dish by frying the corn flour and adding fried beans and cheese onto the tortillas.

“The only Mexican thing part of me is my food,” Sandoval said. “That’s what keeps me cultured.”

Recipe for Sopes:

Serving Size: 2-3 servings

Total Time: 30 minutes

Supplies: Skillet or griddle

Ingredients for sopes: 2 cups of Maseca Amarilla, 1 ½ cups of water, salt, cooking oil

Toppings: chicken, tomatoes, onions, lettuce, cheese, preferred sauce/salsa

Directions:

1. Combine Maseca Amarilla, water and salt. Knead the mixture for five minutes or until it is no longer sticky.
2. Divide dough into six to eight even pieces and flatten into thick tortillas.
3. Heat skillet or griddle on high heat. Cook each sope for one minute on each side until it is lightly brown.
4. Hold each sope by the side so that it is facing upwards. Pinch the edges to make a border.
5. Cover the sopes with a cloth to keep them warm and moist.
6. When it is time to serve the sopes, fry them in a skillet with oil until they are golden brown.
7. Remove the sopes from the skillet and soak up excess oil.
8. Add toppings onto each sope and serve immediately.

Sopes Reviews:

“It tastes like beans,” junior Olivia Iheme said. “I thought it would taste bad. It tastes okay, I mean I don’t hate it but I don’t love it. It just needs a little salt.”

“It tastes good,” junior Susie Nguyen said. “It tastes like bread and regular beans. I didn’t think it was a Mexican food. When I tried it, I thought it was totally different.”

“It tastes like corn tortillas for sure,” junior Nancy Tran said. “I think it’s alright. I like Mexican food.”

Recipe for Efo:

Serving Size: 4 servings

Total Time: 35 minutes

Supplies: Sauce pan

Ingredients: spinach, 1 onion, 2 tomatoes, 2 bell peppers, 1 cup of vegetable oil, 2 seasoning cubes and salt

Directions:

1. Wash and soak spinach.
2. Slice onions, tomatoes, and red peppers into strips. Blend together.
3. Pour blended mixture in a pot, pour the oil in and let it cook.
4. Crumble seasoning cubes into pan, and add salt to taste. Let soup cook for 15-20 minutes.
5. Drain the spinach
6. After 20 minutes of cooking, add the spinach to the soup. Let it cook and mix for five more minutes
7. Serve and eat.

Efo Reviews:

“I’m tasting spinach but it’s got some kind of seasoning,” sociology and psychology teacher Chris Mills said. “I’m tasting a vinaigrette. In traditional black cultural we eat a lot of greens and spinach so therefore it’s similar to that, but it’s just hotter. It’s got a tingly taste down my throat. It’s not bad.”

“I think it tastes pretty good,” junior Joy Omorojie said. “It actually reminds me of the cultural food that my mom makes.”

“It’s good actually,” junior Gwyenth Hemphill said. “I actually really like spinach. It’s tasty and I like it because it’s spicy. I didn’t expect that.”

Recipe for Eba:

Serving Size: 2 servings

Total Time: 10-15 minutes

Supplies: A bowl or pot, wooden spoon

Ingredients: one cup of Cassava grain, two cups of water

1 Cup of Cassava grain

2 Cups of water

Directions:

1. Put water to a boil in a pot.
2. Add the Cassava grain to the water and stir constantly.
3. Continue to cook until the consistency of the mixture becomes thick. (It should be similar to the consistency of mashed potatoes.)
4. The dish should be ready to be eaten. It is best eaten along with soups and other dishes.

Eba Reviews:

“It tastes like bread dough,” junior Cathryn Raney said. “It needs flavor. I would eat it with something.”

“It’s like mushy in your mouth,” freshman Yvette Garcia said. “It tastes different, not weird, but different.”

More cultural recipes:

 http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/category/cuisines

http://www.epicurious.com/articlesguides/blogs/80dishes

https://foodhero.org/recipes/recipe-categories/cultures

Recipe for Egusi Soup:  http://www.kadiafricanrecipes.com/egusi-soup.html

Recipe for Puff Puff: http://www.nigerianfoodtv.com/2012/10/puff-puff-how-to-make-nigerian-puff.html