Many of you have visited the U.S., but I have yet to visit Nigeria, so I seek your assistance.

What "American" foods do you like?

Which do you not like?

If I were to visit Nigeria, which I hope to do very soon, what Nigerian foods would remind me of American foods?

How would you describe Nigerian food in general? (For example, Thai food tends to be spicy, while Japanese food does not)


Thank you for your input!

I'll recommend you go straight to Iya Bas joint or Mama Put

I think Naija food can be compared more to African American Soul food than regular American (burgers and fries) type food.

Naija food, like African American soul food generally tends to be more intensely spiced than European American cuisine and Naija food like soul food uses techniques  like frying meat and using all parts of the animal for consumption.


If you have eaten Cajun food, then most Naija Soups are closest to Cajun Gumbo (sp). It consists primarily of stock, meat and/or fish and shellfish, a thickener, and the vegetable.

The closest thing I can think of to our flavoured rices (jollof et al) are Jambalaya(sp)
rice cooked with tomato, spices, herbs stock and meats/ fish (Sort of a one pot deal)
don't know if this helps?

@chamotex:
I appreciate the input, but you'll have to help me out here--what (and where) are these two places you mention? Are they local restaurants, chain restaurants or are they friends of yours who happen to be good cooks?

@AMAKAONE:
Thank you for taking the trouble to post pictures! They both look to be absolutely delicious! Yes, you've been very helpful. These descriptions you provide have some of my favorite things in them!

Expect delicious egusi soup,ofe nsala,palm kernel soup(banga) and enuff ewedu,gbegiri,oha,ofe onugbu, dont get scared yet they are all delicious and KPOMO rules !

mama put is a restaurant that serves african dishes, iya basira hhmmm ask styl-plus !

i can see amaka is out to render our long throat useless

So, when I make it to Nigeria, iice, you'll see to it that I don't starve by helping me find all these wonderful foods of which I'm reading?

Thank you all for your input and kindness on this thread! While we're on this topic, let's go a little deeper: 

In the US usually the first morning and midday meals are somewhat lighter than the evening meal, whereas in Europe the midday meal is usually the most substantial.  How about Nigeria?  What would a "typical" morning, midday and evening meal be in Nigeria? 

Also, what about beverages?  For example, the English drink tea more so than Americans, who drink more coffee than the English.  Does Nigeria have a "national" beverage, so to speak?

drrion,

go to nigeria with no money and no family to WU to you. then you will understand better. don't let anyone use cotton wool to cover your eyes
okay breakfast is masa da miya/masa da sugar/masa da yaji.
breakfast could be akara dey akamu. the akamu is more like corn starch with sugar. i think like pudding but whitish/akara or kose/borodi.

now lunch burodi da coke or fanta  most on NL are customer to this kind of meal so they will undy

dinner hot eba with any the soups listed on NL.

@Hauwa

Burodi + Lemu



kada ka sake fadin hake


Wanne abinci ki ka fi so?

wana abinchi average Gamines

i like nigerian rice, i dont know the name of it though. i like asaro and i like ching ching (sp) i think im spelling it right and i like these nigerian biscuits, they really sweet they taste like pancakes with syrup. i dont know the name of it though.

i think breakfast is quite light mainly bread and eggs then lunch yea, dats d heavy one, eba and egusi soup, u will love it, also try pounded yam and egusi soup. den dinner is kinda light also, probably rice like u saw in the pics, NOTE, it depends on the person there is no fast rule about when and what to eat. then about beverages i think most people prefer chocolate drinks like bournvita and milo. but yea in nigeria tea is also popular but i think those i mentioned are the beverages consumed the most. av a nice time in nigeria u will love it and pls try not to run out of money or it mite be a living hell.

It's all about 'em spices.

drrionelli:

If I were to visit Nigeria, which I hope to do very soon, what Nigerian foods would remind me of American foods?

This is pretty irrelevant to the topic, but I think you should go with a mindset that nothing will taste like American food. There's no point going to a different country just to eat the same kind of food you usually eat in your own country. . . I dunno if that makes sense.

no contest!! naija food will beat it hands down!

like them naija boyz said! how them go dey eat efo(veg) with no meat!? lol

chyk91:

i think breakfast is quite light mainly bread and eggs then lunch yea, that is d heavy one, eba and egusi soup, u will love it, also try pounded yam and egusi soup. den dinner is kind of light also, probably rice like u saw in the pics, NOTE, it depends on the person there is no fast rule about when and what to eat. then about beverages i think most people prefer chocolate drinks like bournvita and milo. but yea in nigeria tea is also popular but i think those i mentioned are the beverages consumed the most. av a nice time in nigeria u will love it and please try not to run out of money or it mite be a living hell.

some people eat akpu for breakfast abeg.
beans porridge nko?

what is light about eating one whole  "agege bread"  or "our lady's" collapsed  into a fufu like consistency while drinking "tea" from a 2 litre "who send you" cup with refills sef.
None of our foods are light abeg.
let's speak the truth and shame the devil
Are you talking of another Nigeria or the one with Rivers Niger and Benue ?
Go to main market Onitsha or Alaba and see the average trader eating breakfast and If you don't see at least 2 loaves of bread and 4 boiled eggs set before him,my name is not osisi

poster we dnt deal with breakfastlunch and bla bla!!!!!
na wetin dey kitchen u go chop!!!! na if u dey house be dat!!!!
if u are outside ur house, naija is so blesed with eateries canteens!!!! any where u are u'll fine em

tosinadeda:

poster we dnt deal with breakfastlunch and bla bla!!!!!
na wetin dey kitchen u go chop!!!! na if u dey house be that!!!!
if u are outside ur house, naija is so blesed with eateries canteens!!!! any where u are u'll fine em

WORD!!!

nothing like breakfast, lunch or dinner for Naija
Na when u dey hungry, u go chop.
Iya Bas still dey there now

chamotex:

WORD!!!

nothing like breakfast, lunch or dinner for Naija
Na when u dey hungry, u go chop.
Iya Bas still dey there now

Haha!!

Same in liberia!!!

Breakfast,Lunch,Snack,Dinner and Supper do not exist!!

Eat what You want,WHEN YOU WANT!!

Food is like beauty.  A food that is good to you may be bad to me

Nigerian food is actually very nice.Expect a lot of spices and pepper.

yes pepper and drrion, you will have to go to toilet with hand fan

*Hauwa*:

yes pepper and drrion, you will have to go to toilet with hand fan

I cant stop laughing. you are funny as heck.

some people eat akpu for breakfast abeg.
beans porridge nko?

what is light about eating one whole "agege bread" or "our lady's" collapsed into a fufu like consistency Grin while drinking "tea" from a 2 litre "who send you" cup with refills sef.
None of our foods are light abeg.
let's speak the truth and shame the devil Grin
Are you talking of another Nigeria or the one with Rivers Niger and Benue ? Grin
Go to main market Onitsha or Alaba and see the average trader eating breakfast and If you don't see at least 2 loaves of bread and 4 boiled eggs set before him,my name is not osisi Grin

Our people make the mistake of thinking that apu is a heavy food while bread and tea is a light one. They are both carbohydrates in different forms. Speaking of our food, I don't think American food is lighter either. It depends on who is eating them and what you are eating. At least we eat veggies at home, do you know that some Americans have not eaten vegetable since they were born and they are about 28yrs?.

Typical American breakfast consists: Scrambled eggs, pancakes and syrup, sausage and biscuit, muffins and burritos, steak, bacon etc and a 32 OZ coke or pepsi as water because they rarely drink water. As a matter of fact, some brush their teeth in the morning with flavored water and will never allow water into their mouth for the whole day.

@hauwa, girl, im feeling u. let poster come and do it d way its done. abi all u nairalanders want to lie that u've not done the bread and coke move

The adage ''one man's meat is another man's poison'' holds true here. Nigerian foods are like beauty which, they say is in the eyes of the beholder. In fact, i would have thought that part of ur reason for coming here is to experience our culinary skills. They say the taste of the pudding is in the eating. Come and taste our local dishes and i assure u, u will forget about all the leaves u have been used to in the US.

LMAO! Chamotex@ You said it all!, HEY NIGGROE, your English aint sound right, you sure from the U.S or just trying to make a say out of nothing, Then i support you go to IYA BAS. or MAMA PUT! that one of the best experienced places to get quality Nigerian Foods / meal / dish or as u may wish to call it!.


BRB,

*osisi:

some people eat akpu for breakfast abeg.
beans porridge nko?

what is light about eating one whole "agege bread" or "our lady's" collapsed into a fufu like consistency while drinking "tea" from a 2 litre "who send you" cup with refills sef.
None of our foods are light abeg.
let's speak the truth and shame the devil
Are you talking of another Nigeria or the one with Rivers Niger and Benue ?
Go to main market Onitsha or Alaba and see the average trader eating breakfast and If you don't see at least 2 loaves of bread and 4 boiled eggs set before him,my name is not osisi

Nothing more to add my dearest Osisi. BTW, what you described above is just breakfast which an average Nigerian agrees to be "light" so you can imagine a heavy lunch in Onitsha or Ariaria market. Thank you my dear, your post is ebeano.

It would be good to know what our national
beverage is,

yeap you are right, but what are they? :