Asaro (Yam Pottage). Eat More Yam

 

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I was having a conversation with my friend about Nigerian foods and I have to say, since I started blogging about food, I realized not just how much versatility there is to it, but the endless options there is with all kinds of foods; especially Nigerian foods. The options to make with just one ingredient is endless

Anyway, I decided to make some yam pottage, but after peeling the yam, I sort of procrastinated. (Though it did yield something beautiful). In my procrastination, I soaked the yam pieces in some cold salty water, like I was going to fry it. I let it sit in the salty water for some hours and when I decided to cook it, it was simply amazing to the taste. It was so good, my ajebutters ate theirs with glee. Being a mom is a lot of hard work. Getting your babies to eat yam pottage is another; my ajebutters enjoyed this meal of yam pottage. Happy camper mom 🙂

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The Yorubas call this meal of yam pottage Asaro and it I sometimes served plain or with some sort of stew base . I am Igbo and we call this mean Ji’ agwo ra’gwo. It simply means a yam that has been mixed with all kinds of other foods into a mushy or soup base.

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There are various recipes for yam pottage I have shared one which I made with plantains, and I am quite excited to share this one. The recipes for yam is endless. I am in awe of Nigerian foods

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5.0 from 1 reviews
Asaro
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • 10 pieces of yam
  • 90mls of palm oil or any oil of your choice. You may use coconut oil as a healthier option
  • 1 maggi crayfish(any bouillon works)
  • 1 large red bell pepper
  • 4 plum tomatoes
  • 2 habanero peppers or Ata-rodo
  • 1 medium sized onion
  • 6tbsps of grinded crayfish
  • 2 cups of shredded smoked chicken(the chicken does not have to be smoked)
  • 1 small dry fish(Eja kika)
  • 3 or more cups of hot water or meat stock
Instructions
  1. Peel, wash and soak yam in some cold salty water for 1hour or more
  2. Shred chicken and set aside(you may boil the chicken to soften if it is too hard)
  3. shred and soak dry fish in warm water
  4. Blend the tomatoes, peppers, bell peppers and half of the onion.
  5. Boil the blended tomato mix to dry out the water or pour it through a fine mesh sieve and set aside
  6. Heat up the Palm oil, but not to bleach. Slice in the remaining half of the onion and sauté until translucent. Add the crayfish and sauté for another 6 seconds. You do not want the crayfish to burn
  7. Pour in the tomato and pepper mix and fry until the oil floats to the top. Stir in the Fish and chicken and cook for about a minute. Add the yam, season with the bouillon and some salt to taste and stir. Pour in about 3 or more cups of water or meat stock and stir. (If using meat stock, you may not need a lot of seasonings)
  8. Bring the pot to a boil, reduce the heat and cover the pot tightly. Cook for about 20minutes or until yam is fairly soft. Using a wooden spoon, break the yam into bite sized pieces; making sure to mash some in the process and check for seasonings. Once you are satisfied with how thick the sauce is; remove pot from heat and serve

 

13 comments

  1. Zee says:

    Awww I had bought yams since two weeks now and have not had time to make my desired yam porridge, well I haven’t had the opportunity since I only cook African food (the real traditional way with all the oil and stuff) on treat days (cheat days if you will) 🙂 Now I think I will hope in the kitchen and make me some. Heck! It’s a public holiday today and I deserve some rest and some REAL GOOD FOOD! Ingredients will differ quite a bit for my Cameroonian version but I’ll tag you on insta mate! I’m salivating at the sight of yours already! good job!

  2. Calabar Gal says:

    I came over from Elsie’s blog to wish you happy birthday and got sucked in……

    How rude of me to voraciously devour your entire archive, attempt to head off to the old blog and not felicitate on your new year. Happy Birthday!! May favour be upon you continually…… Cheers.

    P.S: Fab pictures!!

  3. Doyin says:

    Hi Nma, am not really a commenter i’m a get my recipe and go kinda gyal, but can I just say that you are so awesome and so talented, every of your recipes i’ve tried goes down a treat, and the ingredients are so accessible even in Nigeria, and that’s the issue I had with other recipe sites or books you can’t get a lot of the stuff here! Bless you for saving my home! Keep it up! Love ya plenty happy new year Ladies

  4. Emilia says:

    Yum! Looks good. I’m trying it out now now now ?. Thanks for the recipe. But I can use veggie oil instead of palm or coconut oil right?✌✌✌

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