In brief
- Jollof spaghetti is a reinvented jollof rice: pasta replaces rice in the same spicy tomato sauce
- Origin: Nigeria, a recent addition in big cities as a quicker alternative to rice
- Essential ingredients: spaghetti, tomato and tomato paste, pepper, chilli, onion, garlic, ginger, curry and thyme
- Context: a quick everyday meal, popular with students and people in a hurry
Origins and cultural history of jollof spaghetti
Jollof spaghetti takes the aromatic base of jollof rice, the spicy tomato rice dish born of the Wolof empire of Djolof, which ruled part of present-day Senegal, Gambia and Mauritania. It simply replaces the rice with spaghetti, which cooks faster.
This variant is a more recent adaptation of Nigerian cuisine, designed to be quicker than with rice: it is especially popular with students and people in a hurry, who prepare it in a single pot, sauce and pasta together, on the same principle as jollof rice.
What are the essential ingredients of jollof spaghetti
The jollof spaghetti recipe uses the same ingredients as jollof rice, changing only the starch. The spaghetti cooks directly in the tomato sauce, which lets it absorb all the flavours.
- spaghetti
- fresh tomatoes and tomato paste
- red pepper and chilli
- onion, garlic and ginger
- curry, thyme and bay leaves
- chicken stock
What to know about jollof spaghetti
Jollof spaghetti is a recent Nigerian take on jollof rice: spaghetti replaces the rice in the same spiced tomato sauce, made with fresh tomatoes and tomato paste, red bell pepper, chilli, onion, garlic, ginger, curry, thyme and bay leaves. The spaghetti cooks directly in the sauce, with chicken stock, so it absorbs all the aromas. Everything is made in a single pot, on the same principle as jollof rice. It is a quick everyday meal, popular with students and anyone in a hurry.
Frequently asked questions about jollof spaghetti
Can jollof spaghetti be made without meat?
Yes. Replace the chicken with mushrooms or chickpeas, keeping the same spicy tomato sauce base; the cooking time for the spaghetti stays the same.
Why cook the spaghetti directly in the sauce rather than boiling it separately?
The spaghetti absorbs the cooking liquid at the same time as the flavours of the sauce, which gives a more flavourful dish than pasta simply topped with sauce, on the same principle as jollof rice cooked in a single pot.
Where to find jollof spaghetti ingredients in France?
NKOSI sells the garlic powder, ginger powder, tomato paste, chilli purée, curry, thyme, bay leaves and chicken stock in this recipe on nkosiagro.com and ships them from the Paris area within 24 to 72 working hours, to mainland France (2 to 3 working days) and to ten European countries. The minimum order is 39 €: in France, delivery to a pickup point is then free, and home delivery is free from 69 €.
