Category: Ugandan Food

Curry Spiced Jackfruit Seeds Video

~ Sophie ~ Leave a comment

Curry spiced jackfruit seeds. Learn how to prepare them for cooking and how they can be substituted for other foods. 

Did you know you can eat jack fruit seeds?

I like foods that are versatile and have more than one use. Take a jack fruit, for example. It can be eaten as a meat substitute when unripe, as fresh fruit when ripe and as jam  or juice when over ripe. And we don’t even end there. The seeds are edible as well! I have been eating jackfruit seeds for as long as I can remember and it was an exciting part of the experience of slaughtering the jackfruit where we roasted the seeds after eating our weight in the ripened fruit. Such great times!  Now I deliberately collect each and every seed so that I can cook them. And in case you are wondering, cooking these seeds is not as had as you think. Labor intensive, yes, but not hard. In fact I made a short video that you can watch to understand what I am talking about. 

What you will need: 

2-3 C. Jackfruit Seeds

2 Tsp. Curry Powder

Salt

2-3 springs of rosemary/thyme

A splash of

Vinegar

Observations:

  1. Make sure you are using ripe jackfruit seeds.
  2. Make sure to use seeds that have not started to sprout. If a seed shows any slight sprouting or looks green, discard it. 
  3. The size and of the seeds depends on the type and species of the jackfruit flesh you are eating. Some fruits have thin flesh while others have plump flesh. 
  4. Jackfruit seeds have 3 layers of protective coverings. Two will be removed. to reveal a third layer which is edible and you do not need to remove it. 
  5. Drying the seeds helps loosen the second protective covering so that it is easier to remove. 
  6. if you don’t fancy curry since, you can use whatever spice blend you have/ prefer. Salt and pepper works well too. 

 

Method

  1. Slaughter the jackfruit.
  2. Remove and set aside all the seeds. 
  3. Remove the initial gummy-like protective covering form each individual seed. and wash them.
  4. Place seeds in a clean pan, add water and bring them to a boil. Boil seeds for about 30 or until they are soft and tender when pierced with a fork
  5. Drain the seeds and place them on a tray/flat plate to allow cooling and drying. They should dry for about 6 hours. 
  6. After they have dried and the second protective covering has loosened a bit, peel off the covering from each seed. 
  7. After peeling all the seeds, place a frying an on high heat. Add oil, salt, curry powder and the seeds and mix well
  8. Let the seeds cook in the oil for about 20 minutes on medium-high heat. Stir occasionally so that heat is evenly distributed.
  9. You can bake your seeds if you have an oven. 
  10. Add a splash of vinegar/lemon juice to the seeds  and 2-3 springs of rosemary/thyme to add to the flavor. 
  11. Remove the seeds from fire once they turn a vibrant golden brown color and  are crispy on the outside. 
  12. Serve as a snack or a substitute for roast potatoes. 

Have you eaten jackfruit seeds before? 

Use #AkitchenInUg to share your creations.

 

How to Make the Perfect Ugandan Mandazi

~ Sophie ~ 13 Comments

Lemon zest flavored Mandazi recipe that is sure to guarantee you amazing mandazi every single time!

Guys, you know that my love for mandazi is unrivaled. In fact, if I had not named this blog A Kitchen in Uganda, I would have gone with mandaziloveaffair or something around those lines. Yes, that love is real and so here I am, again, with another Mandazi recipe. I have shared Mandazi here  and here before but never a classic mandazi recipe. You know the one with the trusty lemon zest for flavoring. Mandazi are life savers and are not celebrated enough to be honest! I cannot recall the number of times I have had a pack of Mandazi on me for emergency situations while running errands in Kampala. Tell me, can you make Mandazi without looking at a recipe? This recipe is sure to guarantee you amazing mandazi every single time.

What you will need:

4 C. All purpose flour

1/4 C. Flour for flouring the surface and rolling dough

8 Tbsp. Sugar

2 C. Water

2 Tbsp. Butter/Margarine at room temperature

1 Tsp. Baking powder OR 1/4 Tsp. Baking Soda

1 Tsp. Lemon zest

1/2 Tsp. Ground Cloves (optional)

1 Tsp. Vanilla essence

A pinch of salt

Oil for frying

Observations:

  1. The water should be cold.
  2. Make sure your oil is not very hot because this will cause the mandazi to burn before cooking through.
  3. Cloves and lemon zest give the mandazi a warm and citrusy flavor.
  4. If you are using less oil, make sure to flip the mandazi occasionally so the dough is fully cooked through.

Method

  1. In a clean bowl, sift flour and baking powder.
  2. Add salt, cloves, lemon zest and sugar and mix well.
  3. Rub in the butter till the flour becomes coarse.
  4. Mix the vanilla in water. Add water to the flour and mix till a firm dough forms.
  5. Knead the dough for about 2 minutes until it is no longer sticking to your hands. Set aside to rest for ten minutes.
  6. After 10 minutes, flour your surface and roll out the dough to about 1 inch thickness. Cut out rectangular shapes from the dough. OR divide the dough into 10 -12 equal parts and form round-shaped balls.
  7. Place a pan of frying oil on medium heat. Let the oil heat through. Fry the mandazi in batches of 4-5 for about 7 minutes or until risen and golden brown. Makes 10+.

In the coming weeks I will be sharing a modified version of this mandazi in true AKIU fashion. Stay tuned.

Use #AkitchenInUg to share your creations.

Baked Soft Stove-Top Bread

~ Sophie ~ 7 Comments

Soft, fluffy and delicious stove top / frying pan bread. No oven required. 

I recently got an oven after along time of making bread on the stove top and by steaming. It  is so different and exciting leaning this new appliance. Although I have an oven now, its electricity consumption is something that will make me use it less. But bread still needs to be made. Enter the stove top bread making. I have been so accustomed to making baked goods without an oven like this 3-tier Coconut Cinnamon  Cake was made on a sigiri (charcoal stove) and these Carrot Cake Muffins and Breakfast Flatbreads were steamed and made on the stove top respectively. To to pay my respects to all the pans I have abused in the process of making stove top bread, I am sharing this soft fluffy and delicious bread that is oh-so-satisfying. The recipe is for a savory kind  of  bread but you can sweeten it by removing the carrot, onion, green pepper and black pepper. You will find yourself making this over and over again. Just so you know, I had to battle with the people I cook for to take these pictures because it was so good they couldn’t wait!

What you will need: 

3 C. Flour, Sifted

1 C. Flour for dusting

4 Tbsp. Sugar

1 Tsp. Salt

1/3 C. Oil

1 C. Milk, Warm

2 Tsp. Yeast

1/4 C. Grated Carrot, onion and green pepper

1/2 Tsp. Black pepper, ground

Oil for cooking

Observations:

  1. You will need a sturdy frying pan (a cast iron one if possible).
  2. You can substitute diary with plant/nut milk if you are vegan.
  3. Use bread/all purpose flour which has more gluten than cake flour and thus produces a chewy bread.
  4. The key to having fluffy bread is to place a frying pan on high fire, add a tablespoon of oil in the pan and let the oil get really hot. Place your bread dough into the pan and immediately reduce the heat to low. The high heat will be enough to cook the bread until it is time to flip it.

Method

  1. Combine 3 cups flour, salt, sugar, yeast, carrot, onion, green pepper and black pepper in a bowl. Mix well. Add oil and mix well.
  2. Gradually add the warm milk into the mixture while mixing. Mix till a dough is formed. The dough should be a bit elastic (not too firm).
  3. Cover the dough with a damp cloth. Let the dough rise for 1 hour.
  4. Generously flour your surface. After an hour, remove the dough from the bowl and place it on the floured surface. Knead the dough for about 5 minutes until smooth and non-sticky.
  5. Divide the dough into 6 equal balls. Spread each ball with your hands into a palm-sized disk. Make sure the disks are thick ( at least 1/2 inch).
  6. Generously flour your surface and place the disk on it.
  7. Let the bread rise for another 20 minutes.
  8. Place a frying pan on high fire. Add a tablespoon of oil in the pan.
  9. Once the oil is sizzling, gently place the risen bread dough into the hot pan. Immediately reduce the fire/ heat to low and cover pan.
  10. Let the bread cook for 5 minutes on low fire on one side. Remove cover and flip the bread and let the other side cook for another 5 minutes on low fire.
  11. Remove from fire. Repeat the process till all the bread is cooked.
  12. Serve hot with your favorite stew, butter, jam etc

 

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