Sunday Snacking - Fried Plantain, Rice Akara, Beans Akara and Gravy

Plantain Rice Akara and Beans Akara

As I mentioned in my previous post, I am a lover of plantain. My second love is akara (similar to, Nigerian “puff puff”) especially rice akara.

In this post, I made my three favourite nibbles, plantain, rice akara and beans akara. You can have these little nibbles with gravy.

*Note* “Sierra Leonean gravy” is different from your usual gravy you have with your roast dinner.

African gravy is prepared with chopped onions, tomatoes, blended pepper with onions, oil and seasoning. The ingredients are fried together in a small amount of oil.

Plantain Rice Akara and Beans Akara

Ingredients

            Plantains

Plantain

 

Ingredients to make rice akara

 Rice Akara

1. Pack of rice flour
2. Bunch of extra ripe bananas (maximum 10)
3. Nutmeg
4. Sugar
5. Baking powder
6. Oil for frying

Ingredients to make beans akara

     Beans Akara

           1.      Pack of black eyed beans

           2.      Salt for flavor 

           3.   Oil for frying

Cooking Instructions

Plantain

1. Peel plantain
2. Slice them side ways
3. Deep fry the plantains until they are golden brown and put them aside

Rice Akara 

Rice akara mixture

1.      Peel bananas and mash until it is smooth and runny

2.      Add 2 cups of rice flour to the mashed banana

3.      Add 2 pinches of nutmeg

4.      A teaspoon of baking powder to allow to the akara, to rise.

5.      Half a cup of sugar or less depending on how sweet you want your akara to be.

6.      Your mixture should look like the image on the right.

7.      Heat about 500ml or enough oil for deep frying into a frying pot

8.      Deep fry the akara by scooping tablespoon size of the mixture with your hands and dropping it gently into the hot oil.

9.      Fry in very low heat until light brown

Beans Akara

Beans akara mixture

   1.      Soak the beans is water overnight. This will help remove the skin/chaff from the beans easily.

   2.      Next rub the beans with both hands thoroughly to remove the skin/chaff from the beans

   3.   Once all the skin/chaff has been removed, put the beans in blender and blend to a smooth consistency.

   4.      Pour the mixture in a mixing bowl and whisk for a further 10 – 15 mins to give the mixture more air to allow the akara to rise as nothing else will be added to it except salt for flavour.

    5.      Your mixture should look like the image left.

   6.      Deep fry the akara by scooping tablespoon size of the mixture with your hands and dropping it gently into the hot oil.

    7.      Fry in very low heat until golden brown

Stew

1.      Chop onions and spring onions.

2.      Blend one onion with 2 scotch peppers

3.       Pour about 80ml oil into hot sauce pan and heat to cooking temperature.

4.      Once oil is heated, fry chopped onions, spring onions and chopped tomato.

5.      Add bits of the blended pepper and onions into the stew whilst the above is cooking.

6.      Add season and salt for flavour and 2 squeezes of tomato puree to give the stew colour.

7.      Leave stew to cook on low heat until all the water from the stew has evaporated

  Voila! Aprons off dish is done!