Jollof Rice

When I served the Delish test kitchen this recipe, the room went quiet. It’s filling, fascinating, and truly a standout thanks to a balance of heat, sweet (from the tomatoes and peppers) and spice profile. Plus, it’s not too spicy—this is the rice you can serve at all your parties without fear of burning someone’s taste buds. It’s a must-try option for Thanksgiving, Kwanzaa, or Christmas, but is so delicious, it shouldn’t be reserved for only holidays. Weeknight dinner comfort, here you come.

How To Make Jollof Rice

INGREDIENTS

• Tomatoes: Three medium-sized tomatoes are my preference here, but the beautiful thing about this recipe is how adaptable it is. If you have tomatoes that have been sitting for a bit too long, throw them in here—they will still cook down great.
• Scotch Bonnet Pepper: You can use a Scotch bonnet or a habanero pepper here depending on your preference and heat tolerance. If you really can’t take the heat, remove the seeds to make this a bit more mild.
• Onion: I love the texture of onions in my jollof rice, so I prefer to slice them on the chunkier side. If you’d prefer a smaller bite, slice or dice them thinner.
• Red Bell Pepper: Same goes for the red bell pepper—I like the texture of a chunkier chop, but you can dice it smaller if you prefer.
• Chicken Stock: You can use chicken stock or water here depending on if you want to make this rice vegetarian or not. Just keep in mind that you might want some extra on hand if you need to thin it out.
• Seasonings: Jollof rice has a complex flavor, largely thanks to the spice profile. I use a combination of bay leaves, curry powder, paprika, dried thyme, ground ginger, garlic powder, onion powder, and salt and pepper. When it comes to the paprika, you’ve got a few options: I like to use Hungarian paprika, but if you don’t have that, you can use smoked paprika instead.
• Tomato Paste: The tomato paste adds that concentrated sweetness and slight acidity that ties everything together.
• Rice: Use your favorite long-grain rice here. Before adding it into your sauce, make sure you properly strain and wash it. No shortcuts here—rinse and strain it until the water runs clear.
• Butter: The inclusion of a little bit of unsalted butter ensures that our sauce will be velvety and smooth.

STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS

While traditionally this dish is cooked completely on the stovetop, I know that can scare folks. Finishing this in the oven makes it practically foolproof. So, before we get started, preheat your oven and grease a baking dish with cooking spray.

Next, get out your blender, and add your tomatoes, Scotch bonnet pepper, half of your sliced onions, and the bell peppers. Blend until you have nice smooth consistency, then set your tomato-pepper puree aside.

Add the other half of your onion (the roughly chopped pieces) to a large pan on the stovetop with oil, and sweat them out to bring out their natural sweetness and soften them up. Season with salt, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Then add your spices—we’re going to bloom them to give a more pungent flavor that you’ll be able to taste throughout the rice. Add the tomato paste, and stir everything together for around 2 minutes more.

Add the tomato-pepper mixture to the pot, stirring over medium heat. Cook until the mixture has reduced by about half, and is nice and thick. Your kitchen should smell divine right about now.

Add 1 cup of stock (or water) to the pot, and bring the sauce to a boil before adding your rice. Stir in the rice and butter, then season with salt to taste.

Now, being very careful (the pot will be very hot), transfer the mixture to your prepared baking dish. Cover it tightly with foil, then place in the oven.

You’re going to bake until the rice is tender. This should take around 40-50 minutes, but I recommend checking around the 30 minute mark. If it looks dry or if the rice is still hard, add more water or stock. Once your rice is perfectly tender, remove from the oven, and fluff with a fork before serving.

Full list of ingredients and directions can be found in the recipe below.

Jollof Rice Variations

This is a vegetarian recipe that I love to serve alongside meat or fish, but you can easily add your chosen protein to make it your own. Lamb or chicken would be great choices. Want to up the spice? Leave the seeds in your chosen pepper.