{"id":14236,"date":"2022-03-31T16:33:05","date_gmt":"2022-03-31T16:33:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables"},"modified":"2022-03-31T17:24:31","modified_gmt":"2022-03-31T17:24:31","slug":"could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables","title":{"rendered":"Could Jollof rice be the new hit on Rwandan tables?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Rwanda. <\/strong><\/span>If you want to know about Rwandan authentic cuisine, attend Umuganura celebration (thanksgiving) on the first Friday of August, and make sure you don\u2019t go to the city where they serve maize and soda. Go to places where they really serve what they grow.<\/p>\n

While several popular dishes are made with spices, Rwandan dishes are primarily boiled and not spicy at all, and they are prepared from what is traditionally grown in their gardens \u2014 sweet potatoes, beans, maize, and cassava, among others.<\/p>\n

For instance, Rwanda\u2019s bean consumption is a world record where an average Rwandan consumes 34.8 kg of beans per year, but it is not surprising since beans are among the most productive crops in the country, according to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).<\/p>\n

A view Jollof Kigali, a Nigerian cuisine restaurant where jollof rice and other meals are served at Kisimenti in Kigali on March 29,2022. Craish Bahizi<\/b><\/p>\n

Nevertheless, beans are not all there is on our dining tables! Rice is also relatable to most Rwandans. Only a few (if at all) buffets at restaurants will not have rice.<\/p>\n

While multiple rice dishes are common in Kigali; pilau and different dishes of fried rice, it\u2019s only recently that Jollof rice which traditionally consists of rice, cooking oil, tomatoes and onions, among others, is gaining momentum.<\/p>\n

This dish which even has an international celebration day, August 22, is popular in countries such as Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Cameroon, and each one of them claims to make the best.<\/p>\n

For instance, Layiwola “Lai” Mohammed, Nigeria’s Minister of Information and Culture got himself in trouble in April 2017 when he answered to the question \u201cwhich nation makes the best jollof rice\u201d and he replied \u201cSenegal.\u201d He was then accused by citizens to have \u201cbetrayed his country\u2019s cuisine.\u201d<\/p>\n

While the battle for the best jollof continues, Kigalians are enjoying this dish on a regular basis.<\/p>\n

Emmanuel Chukwu Ifeanyi is a Nigerian national living in Kigali. He moved to Rwanda a few years ago when he got married to a Rwandan woman whom they started together Jollof Kigali, a Nigerian cuisine restaurant where jollof rice and other meals are served.<\/p>\n

\u201cJollof Kigali came to bridge the gap we had identified, where Nigerians and other West Africans found it hard to get their cuisine here in Kigali,\u201d Ifeanyi told The New Times.<\/p>\n

This couple started their business online, primarily on Instagram throughout the Covid-19 lockdown in 2020. Due to the overwhelming demand, they decided it was time to open a restaurant, despite the fact that their set trial period was a year.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe received amazing feedback. We had so much demand that we would not even have enough sleep, so we couldn\u2019t wait for a year to clock. Business here is encouraging,\u201d said Ifeanyi.<\/p>\n

He also disclosed that except for rice, tomatoes and a few other vegetables, most of the ingredients are imported from Nigeria, especially spices.<\/p>\n

\u201cMost Rwandans don\u2019t eat spices, so we put it on the side for them. But generally, spices are added in the cooking process, so West Africans get the one with spices,\u201d Ifeanyi noted, adding that only two in ten Rwandans enjoy spices.<\/p>\n

Aline Tuyishime has been a regular since they started on Instagram. She only learnt of jollof rice from a friend who had travelled from Nigeria.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen my friend flew in, he wanted to eat Nigerian food. We looked for them on Instagram and ordered for jollof rice, which was super delicious,\u201d Tuyishime said, adding that she couldn\u2019t get enough of their goat meat.<\/p>\n

This feeling is shared with multiple people, some of whom are not even Rwandan.<\/p>\n

Another one of their regular who preferred to be referred to as just Olawale also started ordering there when they were only still on Instagram.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt feels good to have a taste of home in Kigali, especially with the convenience of being able to order just after getting back from work and having it delivered, and also the joy of sharing the food experience with my Rwandese friends and have them try out Nigerian meals,\u201d Olawale, a pilot told The New Times.<\/p>\n

Other Nigerian dishes Kigalians can\u2019t get enough of are suya fish, Tropicana fried rice and of course, plantain and fries which a pretty common in Rwandan restaurants.<\/p>\n

However, only a few West Africans order for jollof rice, according to Ifeanyi.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf 20 West Africans walked in here, 19 of them are likely going to order for gari and only one would have rice,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Nevertheless, this doesn\u2019t mean less momentum for the rice; the restaurant is named after it.<\/p>\n

Jollof rice is without doubt another win for Kigali\u2019s evolving metropolitan menu.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Rwanda<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Rwanda. If you want to know about Rwandan authentic cuisine, attend Umuganura celebration (thanksgiving) on the first Friday of August, and make sure you don\u2019t go to the city where they serve maize and soda. Go to places where they really serve what they grow. While several popular dishes are made with spices, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":14235,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,30,28],"tags":[760,763,758],"class_list":["post-14236","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-community","category-homepage-english","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-rwanda","tag-rwanda"],"yoast_head":"\nCould Jollof rice be the new hit on Rwandan tables? - Rwanda<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"If you want to know about Rwandan authentic cuisine, attend Umuganura celebration (thanksgiving) on the first Friday of ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Could Jollof rice be the new hit on Rwandan tables?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"If you want to know about Rwandan authentic cuisine, attend Umuganura celebration (thanksgiving) on the first Friday of ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Rwanda\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-03-31T16:33:05+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-03-31T17:24:31+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sites\/23\/2022\/03\/img-6245e3808b4a7.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"847\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"491\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Could Jollof rice be the new hit on Rwandan tables?\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-03-31T16:33:05+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-03-31T17:24:31+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables\"},\"wordCount\":806,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sites\/23\/2022\/03\/img-6245e3808b4a7.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa Press\",\"Africa Press-Rwanda\",\"Rwanda\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"Community\",\"homepage-english\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables\",\"name\":\"Could Jollof rice be the new hit on Rwandan tables? - Rwanda\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sites\/23\/2022\/03\/img-6245e3808b4a7.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-03-31T16:33:05+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-03-31T17:24:31+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"description\":\"If you want to know about Rwandan authentic cuisine, attend Umuganura celebration (thanksgiving) on the first Friday of ...\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sites\/23\/2022\/03\/img-6245e3808b4a7.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sites\/23\/2022\/03\/img-6245e3808b4a7.jpg\",\"width\":847,\"height\":491,\"caption\":\"Could Jollof rice be the new hit on Rwandan tables?\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Could Jollof rice be the new hit on Rwandan tables?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/\",\"name\":\"Rwanda\",\"description\":\"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\",\"name\":\"cfeditoren\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Could Jollof rice be the new hit on Rwandan tables? - Rwanda","description":"If you want to know about Rwandan authentic cuisine, attend Umuganura celebration (thanksgiving) on the first Friday of ...","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Could Jollof rice be the new hit on Rwandan tables?","og_description":"If you want to know about Rwandan authentic cuisine, attend Umuganura celebration (thanksgiving) on the first Friday of ...","og_url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables","og_site_name":"Rwanda","article_published_time":"2022-03-31T16:33:05+00:00","article_modified_time":"2022-03-31T17:24:31+00:00","og_image":[{"width":847,"height":491,"url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sites\/23\/2022\/03\/img-6245e3808b4a7.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"cfeditoren","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"cfeditoren","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables"},"author":{"name":"cfeditoren","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"headline":"Could Jollof rice be the new hit on Rwandan tables?","datePublished":"2022-03-31T16:33:05+00:00","dateModified":"2022-03-31T17:24:31+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables"},"wordCount":806,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sites\/23\/2022\/03\/img-6245e3808b4a7.jpg","keywords":["Africa Press","Africa Press-Rwanda","Rwanda"],"articleSection":["all news","Community","homepage-english"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables","name":"Could Jollof rice be the new hit on Rwandan tables? - Rwanda","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sites\/23\/2022\/03\/img-6245e3808b4a7.jpg","datePublished":"2022-03-31T16:33:05+00:00","dateModified":"2022-03-31T17:24:31+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"description":"If you want to know about Rwandan authentic cuisine, attend Umuganura celebration (thanksgiving) on the first Friday of ...","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sites\/23\/2022\/03\/img-6245e3808b4a7.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sites\/23\/2022\/03\/img-6245e3808b4a7.jpg","width":847,"height":491,"caption":"Could Jollof rice be the new hit on Rwandan tables?"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/could-jollof-rice-be-the-new-hit-on-rwandan-tables#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Could Jollof rice be the new hit on Rwandan tables?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/","name":"Rwanda","description":"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb","name":"cfeditoren"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14236","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/84"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14236"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14236\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14235"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14236"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14236"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14236"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}