Nigerian stew, also known as Nigerian tomato stew, is a popular West African cuisine, made with fresh tomatoes (or tomato paste), red bell peppers, and scotch bonnet peppers (or habanero peppers). It is traditionally eaten with rice or boiled yam. Nigerian stew is by far the most popular dish in Nigeria.
This dish is a flavorful and vibrant staple in Nigerian cuisine. Every Nigerian stew is different, from its ingredients to the preparation.
I make this every week and always have it in my fridge, as it makes meal prep a breeze. This beef stew is made with beef cuts, but you can change it up as you like. I like that I can come back home after being gone all day, and quickly warm up some low carb rice and have it with this delicious stew.
This rich and flavorful Nigerian Beef Stew is a comforting and satisfying dish that is perfect for a cozy evening in. Slow-cooked with tender beef, vegetables, and spices, it's a perfect way to warm up on a chilly day.
Obe ata or ata din din is a traditional Nigerian food typically found in plenty of Yoruba households. The direct English translation for obe ata is pepper stew, however, some Yoruba speakers would translate it as red stew. Obe ata is traditionally made with meats like beef tripe, goat, cow feet, chicken, and at times fish.
Nigerian Fried Pepper Stew - Obe Ata Dindin
Read also: Learn to Make Nigerian Pepper Soup
Ingredients and Variations
The base starts with freshly pureed organic tomatoes and an array of herbs and spices like Maggi’s bouillon cubes, Lion’s yellow curry powder, fresh basil and red habanero peppers or ground Cameroon peppers.
Vegetables: Tomatoes, red bell peppers, habanero pepper, and onions. For the tomatoes, it is best to use plum tomatoes (also known as Roma tomatoes). These are best for Nigerian stews because they are denser and have less juice.
Olive oil: To fry the tomatoes and pepper mixture.
The traditional Nigerian beef stew is made with scotch bonnet peppers, but a good substitute is habanero pepper, which is similar in heat and flavor. You can use more or less pepper, depending on your preference. These hot peppers help cut down on the acidity of the tomatoes and improve the flavor of the stew.
Depending on my mother’s stock, the stew can have assorted meats like beef, chicken, cow skin, goat meat or even fish. For this version, she used bone-in beef.
Read also: Comforting Nigerian Soup
Broth/stock: To enhance the flavor.
Best Beef Cut
For this Nigerian stew recipe, it is better to go for tougher, less expensive cuts of beef. Tougher cuts have lots of collagen-rich connective tissue, which becomes nice and chewy after cooking. The best cut for this beef stew is the chuck which includes the shoulder, neck, and upper arm muscles of the cow.
How to Make Nigerian Pepper Stew
Some Nigerians like to add fresh garlic, while others might add a sage leaf. Ultimately, most settle on a method that works for them, and I strongly believe my mother has one of the best ways of making stew.
One way to do this is to blend the tomatoes and peppers ahead of time and freeze them in sizable portions. This stew base can remain frozen for many months. Let it thaw overnight before you use it to make stew.
When blending the vegetables, it helps to blend the tomatoes first because they release enough moisture, which helps to blend the other vegetables. Nigerian beef stew tastes much more flavorful if the blended mixture does not contain a lot of water.
Read also: Experience Elephant Pepper Camp
This recipe calls for one habanero pepper. If you think it might be too spicy for you, use half a habanero pepper.
First she places the beef inside a large pot filled with water, herbs, spices and fresh onions. Once that’s cooked, she begins making the stew. A cup of oil is poured into a hot pot, along with more onions, basil, bouillon cubes and curry powder. Next, she adds the blended tomatoes, salt, and ground Cameroon peppers. While the stew is bubbling, she then adds the beef.
- Start by preparing the beef. If not already pre-cut, cut the beef into bite-size pieces, wash and drain.
- You don’t need to add a lot of spices here. You need just enough to bring out the flavor but remember spices will still be added to the stew.
- Let it cook for roughly 20-25 minutes.
- Blend the tomatoes, bell pepper, habanero pepper, and half of the onion in a food processor.
- When the beef is ready, drain it out from the stock, but save the stock.
- Add olive oil to a large pot. When heated, add the chopped onions and stir until they begin to wilt.
- Pour in the tomato mixture, add black pepper, and stir. I don’t add other spices just yet because I will add the stock later on, and I don’t want to run the risk of the stew being too salty.
- Add in the beef and some of the stock. I add half a cup of stock first and possibly add a little more if needed.
- Add the thyme, bouillon powder, and curry.
- Cover and let simmer for 10 minutes on medium-high heat.
Serving Suggestions
This Nigerian stew is a side dish that can go really well with a lot of dishes. It is usually eaten with white rice or jollof rice.
The stew is served with fluffy parboiled rice, but it can also be paired with cassava yams and fried plantain.
Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1 lb beef
- 1.5 cups water
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 3 plum tomatoes
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 habanero pepper
- 1 onion
- ½ cup olive oil
- ½ cup beef stock/broth
- Thyme
- Bouillon powder
- Curry
Instructions:
- Wash beef and place in a pot.
- Add water, salt, and black pepper and bring to a boil.
- After it boils, stir together and let cook for 20-25 minutes.
- Blend the tomatoes, bell pepper, habanero pepper, and half an onion together.
- Chop the other half of the onion.
- Pour olive oil in a pan and when heated, add the chopped onions and stir till its wilted.
- Add the blended tomato and pepper mixture and black pepper and stir.
- Boil for 5 minutes on medium heat.
- Add the beef and ½ cup of stock and mix together.
- Add a little more broth if needed, till it has enough of a stew-like consistency.
- Add the thyme, bouillon powder, and curry.
Each serving contains 3 net carbs and serves 8.
Nutritional Information (per serving)
| Nutrient | Amount |
|---|---|
| Calories | 588 |
| Fat | 46g |
| Carbs | 21g |
| Fiber | 4g |
| Sugar | 11g |
| Protein | 25g |
