Been Such A Long Time!

Boy oh boy have I been crazy busy!!! School is out until January 13, 2009 so I guess I will try to post a few recipes before then. Sorry for the lack of attention but between working full time and school full time - it ain't easy! Also - I'm waiting for some feedback so please write some comments on what you know - or don't know about West African food. I'd love to have people who have some great recipes to submit them.

Schedule Control

Hi! Well, I'm back in school again and loving it - so far! Taking online classes really seems to be the way to go for me because I can control my own schedule. Since I work full time that's really important to me. Sorry to have been away from the blog for so long, but I've been getting acclimated to my new routine. I am also making plans to relocate to Liberia this fall and trying to keep all my other ducks in a row - whew! I will be posting a recipe later today - right now I'm on my way to church but have to exercise first (The Firm videos - 25lbs lost since April - yea!).

A Quick Update

I have enrolled in an online program and classes start tomorrow. I really need to do it online due to my schedule. Anyway - I'm looking forward to it! I will be posting another recipe soon, in the meantime - take care!

Liberian Potato Greens Recipe

1 frying chicken cut up into bite sized pieces with skin removed
1/2 lb raw, deveined, shelled shrimp
1/2 lb beef cut into chunks
1-2 32 oz bag/s frozen chopped spinach or 2-3 lbs of fresh, cleaned spinach
chicken bullion cubes, stock, broth or base
1 medium yellow onion
1 medium green, yellow or red pepper or 1/4 cup of each
1-2 smoked herring filets - pureed
1-2 habanero peppers
3 cups white rice (cook and set aside)
1/2 cup Canola, Olive or vegetable oil
2-3 teaspoons onion powder
2-3 teaspoons garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste

-Heat oil in 3 qt stock pot over medium heat. Season and saute skinless chicken pieces about 6-8 minutes per side, to add golden brown color. Remove and set aside.
-Add beef chucks, saute about 6 minutes each side, again to add color. Remove and set aside.
-Saute onion and peppers about 3 minutes then return meats to pan and add your choice of chicken soup flavoring (bullion) and about 1 pint of water. Simmer about 30 minutes to thoroughly cook meats.
-Add Spinach, pureed herring filet/s and hot pepper/s and continue cooking another 20 minutes to allow liquid to evaporate. Do not allow pot to go dry, you should always have approximately 1/2 inch of broth & oil in bottom of pot.
-Add shrimp to pot with onion and garlic powder, salt and pepper.
-Cook over medium heat until shrimp are pink in color and firm to the touch (about 3 minutes). You can also pre-cook your shrimp to give it color if you choose, then add to pot and simmer about 15 minutes before serving. If you cook shrimp too long, they will become rubbery.
Serve over hot, steamed, white rice.

Coming to America - West African Fusion Cuisine

Twelve years ago, I was in the right place at the right time and got my first taste of West African food. It was indescribably delicious - but I'll try. The dish was called "potato greens" . I have always loved greens and this dish was actually a fusion dish because instead of being made with sweet potato leaves (aka - potato greens) it was actually prepared using chopped spinach. Other than the fact that it contained spinach though, there were no other similarities with the spinach I grew up eating - canned, flavorless and something only Popeye wanted! This spinach was superbly and highly seasoned and cooked with beef, chicken and shrimp - yum! It came served over steaming hot, white rice with pepper sauce (ground fried hot peppers) on the side. Years later, I can now say that not only do I still love this dish, by the way, I do prefer sweet potato leaves to spinach but admit both are delicious.

My husband Jerry, is from Liberia, West Africa. We met at the restaurant where I first tasted West African food. My ability to cook West African food became important to me not only because of my interest in it, but also because I wanted my husband to enjoy his meals. I have always loved food and I love to cook. I want to share that love with anyone else who feels the same way!