An Unexpected Journey: Lagos, Nigeria

At Oldways, we believe that exploring the foods of different cultures opens doors to deeper understanding and respect. A longtime friend of Oldways, Chef Jennifer Hill Booker was kind enough to share her experience learning about the culture and cuisine of Lagos, Nigeria. Through embracing cultural food traditions and heritage diets, Jennifer inspires us to honor the old ways of eating while bringing the best elements of traditional diets forward into today’s world.

An Unexpected Journey: Lagos, Nigeria by Jennifer Hill Booker

Cooking, travel and culinary history are three of my most favorite things and on a recent trip to Africa I was able to combine all three! I consider myself to be well traveled, however, I’ve never had the opportunity to visit the continent of Africa — not for lack of trying. So, when an unexpected email arrived inviting me to present a Masterclass at the 9th Annual GTCO Food and Drink Festival in Lagos, Nigeria, I was ecstatic. This GT Bank-sponsored food festival showcases local food and beverage vendors from around the country and chefs from around the globe to share their style of cooking.  Here was my chance to finally travel to Africa, cook and deep dive into the cultural and culinary history of Nigeria-all at the same time.

My trip started at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and eleven hours later, I arrived at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos, Nigeria. There I was met with the sights, sounds and vibrancy of this robust city intersected with waterways. On the ride to my hotel, I was able to see street vendors selling fresh produce, flowers, local treats, apparel and highly spiced food cooked over a hot grill. After checking into my hotel, for a quick change of clothes, I was off to Red Dish Chronicles Culinary School.

There I was warmly met by the founder and world-renowned visionary, Chef Stone. He introduced me to Chef Roux, his brilliant sous-chef, and a group of very talented students. To say that the hospitality I was shown was by far the most I’ve received in my culinary career would be an understatement. Everyone was so warm and gracious that I felt like I was home. The tour of the school ended in the kitchen where the students had gathered all the ingredients I would need for my Masterclass. Everything was organized by recipe, and as they showed me each item, I was so excited to see ingredients that I never knew existed. There were spices I was unfamiliar with; produce I’d never seen and everything was of the highest quality. I was humbled by how willing the students were to teach me the names and history of the products I was unfamiliar with.

For example, I was particularly surprised to see that the sweet potatoes I’d ordered for my Sweet Potato Biscuits were actually yams and of a variety I’d never seen, much less cooked with. They were larger than those grown in the Mississippi Delta, paler in color and much, much sweeter. The black-eyed peas were another surprise. I thought it would be a cool way to connect the history of black-eyed peas from West Africa to the United States South as part of my Masterclass menu. So, imagine my surprise when I learned that although they look the same, taste very similar to those here in the States and their package said black-eyed peas, they are simply called beans in Lagos. I found this out while I was on stage making my Black-Eyed Pea Salad, which added some humor to my presentation. And the cayenne and red pepper flakes I used in my Hickory Smoked chicken recipe were so hot that I reduced the amount I added to those dishes, only to have the audience tell me that they wanted more pepper!

Outside of my wonderful experience at the food festival, another highlight of my trip was a visit to a local grocery store. This is something I do wherever I travel and a great way to experience the foods of that region, all in one place. Once inside, I made a beeline to the spice aisle. While strolling up and down each aisle, I picked up Jollof Rice Seasoning, Pepper Soup Seasoning and Suya Spice Rub, with an eye on future cooking adventures. Next was a visit to the produce section, which was full of surprises like mini bananas, soursop fruit, groundnuts (what we call peanuts), tamarind and cassava. The freezer case held smoked fish, dried crayfish and cow skin, all used in traditional Nigerian dishes.

After the grocery store, we made a trip to exchange money. Since it was a Saturday, and the banks were closed, we went to market stall run by African wood carving artists. There we met with a gentleman who exchanged my dollars for Naira-at the same rate the banks offered. My chaperone handled the transactions since I didn’t speak the tribal dialect and wanted to make sure that I got the best rate. Next was a visit to some of the many craft markets throughout Lagos. I browsed shops boasting handcrafted jewelry, tribal fabrics, wood carvings and African art. There are so many talented artisans in Lagos, and being able to meet and speak with them greatly enhanced my journey.

Although I cooked recipes from the Deep South for my Masterclass, I made a point to only eat traditional Nigerian dishes. While there I sampled Ogbono and Afang soups which were served with “swallows”, which in this case was made from peeled, grated, fermented and fried cassava root. I enjoyed Jollof Rice wherever I went-all delicious and highly seasoned, but my favorite rice dish was a Pepper Soup Rice. This spicy rice dish is made from pepper soup spices, chicken stock, chicken, turkey; cooked in a huge pot over an open flame and served with a turkey, chicken and a boiled egg. At a local coffee shop, I had a Moringa Latte, which was a syrup made from the Moringa herb, served over ice. The drink was a beautiful green color with refreshing herbal notes. I tried sardine buns, meat patties, gizzards & snails and Nigerian appetizers, called “Small Chops”, washed down with local beers, wines and even a shot of Ogogoro!

I was only in Nigeria for 48 hours which isn’t nearly long enough to see all that Lagos has to offer. But I think I made a great start to exploring Lagos and made the most of this unexpected journey! I’m already looking forward to my next visit.