Vegan Jollof Rice

Name: Vegan Jollof Rice
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 7 1/2 cups rice
Ingredients: 2 medium tomatoes, roughly chopped (about 5 ounces each); 1/2 medium Scotch bonnet pepper (or use a habanero pepper), stem removed; 1/2 medium onion, roughly chopped; 3 small red bell peppers, roughly chopped (about 5 ounces each); 1/2 cup vegetable oil; 1 1/2 teaspoons salt; 1 teaspoon curry powder; 1 1/2 teaspoons hot ground chile pepper, such as African dried chile or cayenne; 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder; 1 tablespoon plus 1 heaping teaspoon onion powder; 2 bay leaves; 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger; 1 tablespoon dried thyme; 2 1/2 cups medium-grain rice

Recipe from Tunde Wey

Adapted by The New York TImes

Updated Aug. 29, 2023

Vegan Jollof Rice — Suzy Allman for The New York Times

Total Time: 1 hour
Rating: 5(1,268)
Comments: Read comments

The chef Tunde Wey is based in New Orleans, but he was born in Nigeria, where jollof rice is a well-loved dish. The rice is cooked in a flavorful tomato and pepper purée; his version is vegan, and laced with chile heat. —The New York TImes

Featured in: Nigerian Food, Crash-and-Burn Style

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Ingredients

Yield:7½ cups rice

2medium tomatoes, roughly chopped (about 5 ounces each)
½medium Scotch bonnet pepper (or use a habanero pepper), stem removed
½medium onion, roughly chopped
3small red bell peppers, roughly chopped (about 5 ounces each)
½cup vegetable oil
1½teaspoons salt
1teaspoon curry powder
1½teaspoons hot ground chile pepper, such as African dried chile or cayenne
1½teaspoons garlic powder
1tablespoon plus 1 heaping teaspoon onion powder
2bay leaves
½teaspoon ground ginger
1tablespoon dried thyme
2½cups medium-grain rice

Ingredient Substitution Guide

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Preparation

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Step 1
In a blender, combine tomatoes, scotch bonnet pepper and onions; purée. Pour out half the purée into a bowl; set aside. Add the bell peppers to the purée remaining in the blender and pulse until smooth. Add to the mixture that was set aside and stir to combine.
Step 2
Heat vegetable oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add blended vegetables along with the salt, curry powder, ground chile pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, bay leaves, ginger and thyme. Bring mixture to a boil.
Step 3
Stir in the rice until well mixed, then reduce the heat to low.
Step 4
Cover pot and let cook until rice is al dente, about 45 minutes. Check after 30 minutes; if rice is sauce-logged, remove the lid to cook off the excess sauce. If rice seems dry, stir in 1 to 2 cups water. Allow the rice at the bottom of the pot to char a bit to infuse it with a smoky flavor.

Ratings

5 out of 5

1,268 user ratings

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Comments

chinedum6 years ago

As a Nigerian craving the taste of home, this recipe was a Godsend. Increased the cayenne to 2 teaspoons and halved the salt and added a knorr vegetable boullion cube to get a richer flavor. My consummate Nigerian mum was skeptical about the idea of vegan jollof rice but lost her doubts after she tasted it. She's going to start adding bell peppers to her jollof rice (unusual but delicious). I cannot wait to make this again.

Cat M7 years ago

Oops, meant country style steak, not some strange Deliverance vampire hunt. Sorry.

GG7 years ago

Made this without the scotch bonnet or habanera pepper. Also used basmati rice. The chili pepper and cayenne gave it enough heat. Added about 1.5 c water after 30 minutes--which was absorbed by the end of the cooking time. Served it with Louisiana shrimp and a salad. Definitely a keeper. Froze the leftovers in baggies. BYW--added the pepper puree to the 1/2 the puree in the bowl. Advise you to put the tomatoes in the blender first, then add the onion!

Devanne11 months ago

Char the bell pepper on a grill (or directly on stovetop element) before blending - you get the smoky taste without the risk of burnt rice and a hard-to-clean pot. Boil the blended sauce and reduce by half to get rid of the raw taste and concentrate the flavour. Add a tablespoon of vegan veggie bouillon powder dissolved in 1 cup of boiling water to compensate for the reduced liquid of the sauce. Small tweaks, big difference.

Nab1 year ago

This was burnt on the bottom and raw on top but at least there’s a whole lot of it.

Dorene1 year ago

We loved this. Although I was cooking for an elderly palette so I did dial down some of the spice. Most all spices that show to use 1 1/2 tsp, I cut to 1 teaspoon and I did not use the scotch bonnet pepper half. I did use the cayenne and the spice level was just right for my family. My mom loved it. I loved it. My sister was ok with it, she did not like the charring part to get a smoky flavor, although I could barely taste any smoky flavor. Will definitely make this dish again.

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