It’s no Cameroonian Party without a sizable tray of Jollof. This one pot rice dish is a staple not only in Cameroon, but also Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal. Rice is slowly cooked in a tomato base sauce, infusing all the wonderful flavors .
Hosting an African Party? These two things are key, actually they are almost an unspoken binding agreement with your guests.
Great Food and Great Music!
Believe me when I say if the food was subpar , your guests will REMEMBER, be it years later they will. So there is no such thing as ” winging it ” .When it comes to hosting an African Party, menu planning is very essential. Some women will be brave enough to take on the task of cooking every meal served ( why would you do that?), others will be smart enough to delegate a few side dishes to friends. These Parties are usually buffet style, with a vast array of traditional dishes present, one of them being jollof rice.
The fist time I decided to bake jollof was solely to free up a burner for something else. That was presumably the best decision I ever made. Nowadays it’s routine. The rice is slowly cooked at a set temperature, no fuss.
Ingredients used in this recipe might be a “faut pas” for some, but I wanted to try something different. Most known Jollof recipes include thyme, curry and sometimes bay leaves,today I switched it up for a Mild Fresh herb Blend. This blend is what I also use for a traditional Cameroonian tomato stew. That being said, Cameroonians might also refer to this as dish as “Riz Saute a la tomate” . You might have just uncovered another side dish for your dinner party but this is a main course in Cameroon. Classically paired with some grilled chicken and sometimes a side of fried ripe plantains.
Let this recipe amongst others inspire you to take your family or guests on a culinary journey to West Africa.
Host a West African themed dinner party. Jollof rice aka Party Jollof never fails.
Oven Baked Cameroonian Jollof
Ingredients
- 2 cups basmati rice
- 1 14oz tomato sauce
- 3-4 cups water
- 1/3 cup Mild Fresh herbs Blend
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat Oven to 350 degrees
- Add tomato sauce in to a medium to large cast iron skillet. Bring to a gentle simmer and let cook 5 minutes. Add olive oil and cook for about 5-10 more minutes.
- Add in fresh herb blend, stir well and let simmer for about 5 minutes.
- Rinse rice twice with warm water. Add into skillet with 3 cups of water. Season with salt and maggi cubes. (You want to season a little over). Tightly seal skillet with lid or aluminum foil
- Transfer to oven and baked for 30 minutes or until rice is cooked. Remove from oven, let sit for 5 more minutes, fluff and serve.
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