As winter tightens its grip, food writer and supper club host Toyo Odetunde offers a delicious antidote to the seasonal gloom. Her solution comes in the form of two vibrant, soul-warming dishes that fuse West African flavours with comforting, familiar formats.
Plantain Boats: A Nigerian Staple with a Playful Twist
The first dish is a hearty, innovative take on a classic Nigerian bean stew known as ewa riro. Odetunde's version uses convenient tinned black-eyed beans for a quicker cook, but loses none of its authentic depth. The stew's signature umami and uniquely earthy flavour comes from two key ingredients: ground smoked prawns and West African red palm oil. It's important to note this artisanal palm oil is distinct from the industrial varieties linked to deforestation.
The stew is then used to fill 'canoas' or plantain boats. This involves roasting ripe, black-speckled plantains until golden, splitting them open, and stuffing them generously with the rich bean and mackerel mixture. The recipe yields six substantial portions and takes about 25 minutes to prepare and 1 hour 15 minutes to cook.
Building Layers of Flavour
The process begins by creating a flavour-packed base from blended plum tomatoes, red peppers, scotch bonnet, garlic, onion, ginger, and tomato puree. This is fried with palm oil, onions, stock powder, and ground prawns. The beans are cooked separately with onion until very soft before being mashed into the reduced, simmering stew along with chunks of tinned mackerel.
Meanwhile, the plantains are roasted at 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6 after being brushed with butter, ghee, or oil. The final, colourful assembly sees each golden plantain carefully split and loaded with the fragrant bean stew, ready to be garnished with fresh herbs.
Chicken Yassa Pot Pie: A Senegalese-Inspired Masterpiece
For those craving pastry-clad comfort, Odetunde's second recipe is a show-stopping fusion. It transforms the bright, caramelised onion and citrus notes of Senegalese chicken yassa into a magnificent pot pie. The filling harmonises treacly onions, tart Dijon mustard, lemon, and briny green olives with marinated chicken thighs.
The chicken is marinated for at least two hours in a potent paste of garlic, ginger, onion, chilli, stock powder, spices, lemon juice, and mustard. It is then cooked before being combined with onions caramelised with brown sugar and allspice. Stock and olives are added to create the luxurious pie filling.
From Marinade to Golden Pastry
The assembly uses ready-made puff pastry for convenience. One sheet lines a greased 22cm shallow pie dish, the filling is added, and a second sheet forms the lid. After sealing and trimming, a golden egg wash is applied. The pie bakes at 220C (200C fan)/425F/gas 7 for one hour, covered with baking paper for the final 15 minutes to prevent over-browning, until it achieves a deep, inviting colour.
This recipe serves four to six people and is a testament to Odetunde's talent for creating innovative fusions between West African and global cuisines. Both dishes offer a powerful, flavourful way to bring sunshine to the darkest winter days, proving that comfort food can be both deeply traditional and excitingly new.
