Nigeria is unarguably home to one of the richest culture in Africa. This is evident in the lifestyle, cultural festivals, and foods you will find in this amazing country.

Nigeria local dishes play a huge role in shaping her culture. While they may be spicier than your regular food, the taste, aroma, and looks always leave a good memory.

Here are the 10 top Nigerian foods to try.

1. Jollof rice

Nigerian jollof rice is one of her biggest exports. It is a dish to try. The Nigerian jollof rice is flavorful and tasty. It is the country’s staple and is eaten across all of its states and the FCT.

Jollof rice is made by cooking rice in rice tomato sauce. The tomato sauce has onions, pepper, tomatoes, and salt as its base. Jollof rice is always well garnished with ingredients such as nutmeg, bale leaf, and even coconut milk.

2. Pounded yam

Pounded yam is basically yam pounded with a mortar and pestle into a unique one-of-a-kind consistency. It is a staple in southwestern Nigeria, especially in Ekiti state, where it is most commonly served in households.

Make pounded yam by crushing boiled yams with a mortar and pestle or stirring the readymade flour. Pounded yam is eaten with soups or stews. Pounded yam and egusi soup or efo are always a great combination.

3. Eba

Eba is to the entire country what pounded yam is to the southwest. Eba is made from garri which is derived from cassava through a multi-stage process. As a staple cassava dish, eba is eaten with all forms of Nigerian soups, including egusi soup, Banga soup, afang soup, and efo. The beauty and uniqueness of eba are in its taste, consistency, and availability.

 

4. Egusi soup

Egusi soup is a favorite in many Nigerian households. The soup is made with ingredients like red oil, vegetable, stockfish, onions, and seafood.

This dish has good popularity across all Nigerian regions. Its fluffiness and taste are some of the main reasons why it is loved. Egusi soup is also one of the easy to prepare Nigerian soup dishes.

 

5. Suya

Suya is one of the most popular snacks in Nigeria. The popularity of the snacks is well deserved as it has a unique taste that mostly comes from the spices.

Suya, which is basically roasted meat, originated from Northern Nigeria. The Hausas are the pioneers of this dish, which is made by roasting slices of beef or chicken over open charcoal grills.

You can get suya basically everywhere in the country, whether from roadside vendors or restaurants.

The special taste and aroma of suya come from the spice blend. The blend could be modified by the maker but basically contains pepper and ground peanut.

The spice is added before the beef is roasted and during the roasting process. You don’t have to look too hard to find suya anywhere in Nigeria. Try it and enjoy the best of Nigerian snacks.

 

6. Pepper soup

Pepper soup gets its popularity from the taste, flavor, and restorative abilities. It could be described as a comfort dish and taken with yam and plantain.

Nigerian pepper soup is light and spicy, typically made with goat meat.

It is made with different spices or a pepper soup spice mix that is available online and in stores. Pepper soup is a household and party staple.

 

7. Moin Moin

Moin Moin is a common Nigerian accompaniment dish made from beans or black-eyed peas. Other ingredients for making this Nigerian dish include oil, pepper, and onions.

Although it is commonly served as an accompaniment dish, moin moin is still a great stand-alone dish that can be snacked. The flavor, aroma, and taste of this dish have earned it a favorite spot at Nigerian parties.

Moin moin makes its way to all kinds of celebrations across the country. Moin-moin can be described as a vegetable dish, one of the most popular vegetable dishes in the country.

 

8. Efo riro

Efo riro is a leafy soup. Its name translates as stirred leafy vegetables. Spinach, meat, locust beans, stockfish, bell pepper, and scotch bonnet are the main ingredients of efo riro. Red oil or vegetable oil is another main ingredient for this vegetable dish.

Locust beans give the dish a unique aroma and taste for which it is known. The soup is commonly served at parties and is another of the Nigerian soups that are easy to prepare.

 

9. Afang soup

Afang soup originates from southeastern Nigeria and is made with local leaves called afang leaves as well as water leaves, red oil, ground crayfish, and seasoning cubes.

The main ingredient, afang leaves, is crushed or crushed to release the unique flavor for which this dish is known.

Afang soup is served at parties, especially in the southeast. It is paired with the common starch staples like eba.

 

10. Akara

Akara, which could be described as beancake, is a common Nigerian snack. The cake is made by deep-frying a mash gotten from beans. The beans are initially soaked in water to remove their peels and then ground into a mash.

Pepper, tomatoes, onions, and any other ingredient, according to the maker’s preference. The mash that is deep-fried can also be gotten from grating water yam.

You can eat these crunchy, delicious snacks with bread as well as akamu. Akara is served in households across all Nigerian regions and is available as a roadside snack. It is also served in restaurants. Akara is delicious, nutritious, and quite filling.

 

Finally, Nigeria is a country known for its rich and yummy dishes. If you are a visitor or a tourist, the Nigerian foods listed in this article will leave you with a memorable experience.