:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/20230111-Efo-Riro-Maureen-Celestine-hero-74fc1b414bbe444ab351d62ed0d32b9b.jpg?w=1200&resize=1200,0&ssl=1 "Efo Riro Recipe (Nigerian Stewed Greens)")
Why It Works
- Blanching the greens first contributes to a delicate, silky texture throughout the accomplished stew.
- Using a mixture of dried crayfish, aromatics, fermented locust beans, and unrefined palm oil gives depth and layers of style.
Now now we have an entire bunch of recipes in Nigerian delicacies that features greens because the precept half, and efo riro, which interprets from Yoruba as “stirred” or “mixed” greens, is a popular recipe that’s moreover simple to prepare. It choices latest amaranth leaves, plum tomatoes, and smoky unrefined pink palm oil, and is often seasoned with flooring crayfish (a powder constituted of smoked and/or dried shrimp), fermented nuts and seeds like locust beans (additionally known as iru in Yoruba), and flooring pink chile peppers.
Amaranth is offered in many varieties. For this dish, I wish to make use of cockscomb amaranth, additionally known as efo shoko, Lagos spinach, or celosia, which is native to West Africa. This variety of amaranth has inexperienced leaves (sometimes tinted with purple) and vibrant pink-, magenta-, and plum-colored flowers. When stewed, the leaves become mild and silky and the flavour is nice and mild, very like spinach. Whereas there’s no good substitute for cockscomb amaranth, a mixture of equal parts amaranth leaves (additionally known as callaloo), a leafy inexperienced whose style is very like spinach, and spinach will work (it is also attainable to make use of all spinach). Plus, if latest greens are troublesome to produce, it’s essential use frozen ones in a pinch.
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Efo riro is constructed on a handful of elements that come collectively to create layered and complex flavors and textures. This particular recipe incorporates tender cubes of beef chuck roast, nonetheless it’s essential use latest seafood like fish or prawns, sautéed mushrooms, or smoked proteins like catfishrooster, or turkey instead. I blanch my greens individually because of I uncover that the stew’s flavors come by the use of greater, and I just like the silky, satiny texture the greens deal with. In contrast, I’ve found that if I wilt the greens straight throughout the stew, the overall style is further distinct and vegetal, which is not what efo riro is about.
Then, there are onions, which might be gently fried in rich, unrefined palm oil until mild and sweet. The stew will get an additional aromatic depth from the dried crayfish, optionally obtainable fermented locust beans, and raw sliced tomato. A purée of raw onion, pink bell pepper, and tomato is poured into all of it, making a flavorful cooking medium that is naturally thickened by the puréed vegetable fibers. There’s chile heat in two varieties, latest Scotch bonnet and dried chile powder, which should always be adjusted to go nicely with one’s type and heat tolerance. The last word step of together with the cooked beef and wilted greens ties the stew collectively. And that’s it, your efo riro is ready to be liked with white rice, eba, and quite a lot of completely different points.
Efo Riro Recipe (Nigerian Stewed Greens)
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For the Beef:
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1/2 pound (225g) bone-in or boneless beef chuck roastreduce into 2-inch objects
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1 small pink onion (about 3 ounces; 80g), thinly sliced
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1 tablespoon flooring crayfish (see observe)
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1 teaspoon (3g) Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for desk salt use half as loads by amount or the similar weight
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1/4 teaspoon Nigerian pink dry pepper
For the Efo Riro:
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2 kilos (905g) latest cockscomb amaranth or spinachwashed properly of any sand or grit (see observe)
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2 medium pink onions (8 1/2 ounces; 250g), half thinly sliced and half roughly chopped, divided
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2 big plum tomatoes (10 1/2 ounces; 300g complete), cored, half a tomato thinly sliced crosswise and the rest roughly chopped, divided
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2 pink bell peppers (14 ounces; 400g complete), stemmed, halved, seeded, and roughly chopped
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1/3 cup (80ml) unrefined pink palm oilsimilar to Obiji
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Kosher salt
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1 tablespoon flooring crayfish (see observe)
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1 to 2 teaspoons tail (moreover purchased as fermented locust beans or dawadawa), optionally obtainable (see observe)
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1/4 to 1 latest Scotch bonnet or habanero pepperstemmed, seeded (if desired), and finely chopped
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Nigerian pink dry pepperto type
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For the Beef: In a medium pot, combine beef, onion, crayfish, salt, dry pepper, and three cups (710ml) water and produce to a boil. Lower heat to maintain up a simmer, cowl, and cook dinner dinner until beef is tender, about 1 hour. Using a slotted spoon, take away beef and swap to a medium heatproof bowl and put apart. Reserve stock (it’s essential have about 1 cup; see observe).
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For the Efo Riro: Put collectively an ice tub in an enormous bowl. In a medium or big pot of salted boiling water, cook dinner dinner amaranth or spinach until tender, 1 to 2 minutes. Immediately swap to prepared ice tub to relax.
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Set a fine-mesh strainer over an enormous bowl. Swap amaranth to strainer and squeeze to remove further moisture; discard liquid. Swap amaranth to a chunk flooring and finely chop; put apart.
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In a blender, pulse roughly chopped onion, roughly chopped tomatoes, bell peppers, and 1/2 cup (120ml) reserved beef stock until a thick coarse purée varieties, 3 to 4 1-second pulses. Put apart.
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In a wok or 10-inch skillet or sauté pan, heat palm oil over low heat until smoking and fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add sliced onion, season evenly with salt, and cook dinner dinner, stirring normally, until onion is softened nonetheless not browned, about 3 minutes. Add sliced tomatoes, flooring crayfish, and iru (if using), and cook dinner dinner until tomatoes are softened nonetheless nonetheless holding their type, 2 to a few minutes. Stir in latest pepper, a 1/4 teaspoon at a time, until desired spice diploma is reached. Proceed to cook dinner dinner, stirring normally, until pepper has softened barely, 2 to a few minutes.
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Add reserved vegetable purée, improve heat to extreme, and cook dinner dinner, stirring typically, until scorching, about 4 minutes. Stir in reserved beef, cut back heat to medium heat, partially cowl, and cook dinner dinner, stirring normally, until stew is barely decreased and thickened and oil swimming swimming pools throughout the edges and on prime, about 10 minutes.
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Stir in chopped amaranth, cowl, and cook dinner dinner until greens are heated by the use of, 2 to a few minutes. Season with salt and dry pepper to type. (If you favor a looser stew, stir in reserved beef stock in 1/4 cup increments to attain desired consistency). Take away from heat and let stand to allow flavors to develop, about 10 minutes.
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To serve, divide stew amongst warmed explicit particular person bowls or serve family-style in a single big bowl. Serve with eba, fufu, Nigerian beef stew or obe ata, rice, and boiled yams, sweet potatoes, or plantains.
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Specific Gear
blender, wok or 10-inch skillet or sauté pan
Notes
The reserved beef stock may be utilized in numerous recipes that call for beef stock like egusi soup.
It is advisable to use completely different edible types of amaranth greens or sweet potato leaves. Do not use little one spinach.
Flooring crayfish is constituted of small prawns which may be normally sun-dried and smoked. You would discover flooring crayfish in a lot of West African retailers and on-line.
Iru (fermented locust beans) may be discovered latest, driedand flooring; it’s essential use them interchangeably. You’ll uncover them in a lot of West African retailers and on-line.
Make-Ahead and Storage
The amaranth could be prepared ahead of time by following Steps 2 and three then refrigerated in an airtight container for as a lot as 2 days or frozen for as a lot as 1 month. If using frozen greens, add frozen greens in Step 10 and cook dinner dinner until softened and heated by the use of, about 8 minutes.
Efo riro could be refrigerated in an airtight container for as a lot as 3 days or frozen for as a lot as 6 weeks (thaw in a single day throughout the fridge). Reheat gently sooner than serving.