Nigerian Tomato Sauce
Spicy, delectable and easy, this is the simplest tomato sauce recipe ever.
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken (cut into parts)
- 250 g beef
- 1 medium onion (1/2 cup chopped)
- 2 scotch bonnet (fresh pepper)
- chilli pepper
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 7 tablespoons tomato paste
- ½ cup + 1 tablespoon flour
- 8 cups water
- 4 chicken seasoning cubes
- salt
- 3 large onions
Instructions
- Wash beef and chicken, place in a large pot and season with salt and 2 seasoning cubes.
- Add chopped onions, whole scotch bonnet and chilli pepper. Boil until tender.
- If the chicken gets tender first, remove, set aside and keep boiling the beef.
- Meanwhile, place a dry saucepan or frying pan, over medium heat.
- Add vegetable oil, when hot, add flour and stir very well. This is called a roux.
- Lower heat to low and cook while stirring all the time, until the colour changes from white to a light brown, 3-5 minutes.
- Take off the heat and add tomato paste. Stir and mix well. Set aside.
- Thickly slice the large onions and set aside.
- When the beef and chicken are tender, add water to the meat stock to make up to 8 cups of liquid then add the remaining seasoning cubes.
- Scoop the roux and tomato paste into the sauce. Stir gently, don't mash up the lumps of tomato paste roux, they will dissolve as the sauce cooks.
- Cook uncovered till the sauce has thickened.
- Taste for salt and pepper and correct seasoning. Remove the whole scotch bonnet.
- Add the thickly sliced onions, stir and cook for 2 minutes take off the heat. The onions will cook a bit more with the residual heat.
- Serve with white rice and steamed vegetables, pasta, couscous, boiled or roasted Irish potatoes etc.
Notes
- Cook roux long enough to remove the rawness of the flour.
- Be careful not to burn your roux. It will ruin the taste of the sauce and it won't be able to thicken the tomato sauce.
- If the roux burns, throw it out and start with fresh flour and oil.
