Jollof Rice

• servings: 8 servings
• active time: 15 minutes
• total time: 1 hour

Ingredients

Cooking spray

3 medium tomatoes

1 Scotch bonnet or habanero pepper (seeded for less heat)

1 medium onion, 1/2 coarsely chopped, 1/2 sliced

3 red bell peppers, cored, roughly chopped

1 c. chicken stock or water, or more or less if necessary

1/3 c. vegetable oil

1 tsp. Kosher salt

2 bay leaves

1 tsp. curry powder

1 tsp. sweet or smoky paprika

1 tbsp. dried thyme

1/2 tsp. ground ginger

1 tbsp. garlic powder

1 tbsp. onion powder

1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1 tbsp. tomato paste

2 c. long-grain rice, rinsed, strained until water runs clear

2 tbsp. unsalted butter

Directions

Adjust oven rack to center position and preheat oven to 350°. Grease a 13" x 9" baking dish with cooking spray.

In a blender, combine tomatoes, Scotch bonnet pepper, chopped onions, and bell peppers. Blend until smooth.

In a large pan, heat oil over medium heat, and add the sliced onions. Season with salt, and cook 2 to 3 minutes. Add bay leaves, curry powder, paprika, dried thyme, ginger, garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper. Cook over medium heat for about 1 minute to let the spices bloom. Add tomato paste, and stir for another 2 minutes.

Add tomato-pepper-Scotch bonnet mixture, stir, and cook over medium heat 10 to 12 minutes, or until mixture is reduced by half.

Add 1 c. stock to the mixture and bring to a boil, 1 to 2 minutes.

Stir in rice and butter. Season with salt to taste.

Transfer mixture to the greased baking dish. (Be careful, it will be hot!)

Cover baking dish tightly with foil, and bake until rice is tender, about 40 to 50 minutes. Check rice after about 30 minutes, and add water or stock if it looks dry or the rice is still hard. Fluff with a fork before serving.

Nutrition

• Calories: 352
• Total Fat: 16 g
• Saturated Fat: 3 g
• Trans Fat: 0 g
• Cholesterol: 9 mg
• Sodium: 306 mg
• Total Carbohydrate: 45 g
• Dietary Fiber: 3 g
• Total Sugars: 5 g
• Protein: 6 g