Jamie Oliver Makes Jollof Rice But It Doesn't Go Down Well With Ghanaians #JollofGate

Jamie Oliver Makes Jollof Rice But It Doesn't Go Down Well With Ghanaians #JollofGate

Naa Oyoo Quartey
Food

I came across Jamie Oliver's article on Jollof Rice on my Twitter timeline two days ago. My curiosity pushed me to tap the article  and I saw a curious dish of rice, vegetables and a chicken drumstick looking back at me. This is going to be interesting I thought as I scrolled through his brief intro on the roots of Jollof. Then came the recipe which I couldn't get the head or tail of when I started reading but then again I think I had expected a step by step list not full paragraphs so I soon got bored.

But here I was knackered after a day's toil and I chanced upon a retweet on #JollofGate. What is this? Curious. Again. So Africans (mostly Nigerians and Ghanaians) are revolting against the Uncle Jamie's recipe. I go back to the recipe and I get lost in the whole Twist of Jollof Rice! I imagined every step of the preparation as he had written it and I ended up with a mess of a dish of soggy rice and vegetables with drumsticks. 

Jamie, if you are reading this, please and please again I know you meant well but Ghanaians especially aren't taking it lightly. We love Jollof like the Brits love tea and scones or mash and gravy or even cornish pastry. Its actually a skill many people take in when they cook it right. Like I have said many times over Jollof isn't an easy dish to prepare and though yours looked easy it just didn't come out right by our standards. It may have originated in another country and may taste differently but here in Ghana its that one dish which is deep in our food culture so any attempt to 'twist' it will be a massacre as you can tell on Twitter already. Anyway, you said its a twist so we will forgive you. Soon. :) 

Below is a link to my post on Storehouse which focuses on the secret to great Jollof. You see there are secrets to cooking the perfect Jollof which few know about, its not really Grandma's secret (though mine is but I shared anyway) but there are some steps which when missed can turn a great meal into an embarrassment. 

Heres how Ghanaians, Nigerians and the world reacted to Jamie Oliver's Jollof recipe on Twitter.




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