Cornchaff

Corn-chaff, a Cameroonian dish that I very much loved as a child and was a family fave! This dish is also very popular in Nigeria; however, it is known as Adalu over there. I don't remember much of Cameroon due to migrating over to the UK at the age of 5. However, I know a lot of the recipes my parents cooked in the house were from the small town of Bamendakwe, northwestern Cameroon.

Traditionally this dish is made with corn grown in Cameroon. Usually, it's roasted over a wood fire, boiled and fried (no oil) in a pan. Sometimes it's left to dry on the roof kitchens.

As the smoke rises while cooking, it slowly dries the corn over the coming months. Once dry, it's ground to grains for fufu corn or boiled for corn-chaff. This method of drying corn is usually only done in the dry season, from late November to February. The rest of the year it continuously rains, which isn't ideal for drying produce on rooftops!

If you are dedicated, you can find this corn in your nearest African corner shop, but I've adapted the recipe and used similar beans that you can find in any local supermarket.

Hope you enjoy this dish as much as I do, it's one very close to my heart.

How to make corn chaff

Makes 4 portions for tomato base mixture

Makes 4 portions for bean mixture

Gluten free / nut free / vegan

Ingredients

Stage 1 - Tomato base

·         ½ onion – finely chopped

·         1 tbsp oi

Stage 2 - Spice blend

·         1 tbsp paprika

·         ¼  tsp cayenne

·         1/4 tsp black pepper

·         1 tsp cumin

·         1 tsp thyme

·         ¼  Maggie cube

·         1 bay leaf

Stage 3  - Tomato and stock

·         50ml lukewater with 1 stock cube  

·         1 tin chopped tomatoes (400g)

·         13g tomato puree

Stage 4 - Herb mix

·         2 cloves of garlic

·         25g ginger

·         12g parsley

·         ¼  red pepper

·         10g water

Stage 5 - Bean mixture

·         1 can Pinto beans (400g) – drained and washed

• 200g of sweetcorn

·        1 can black beans (400g) – drained and washed

·         ½ tsp allspice

·         1 tsp all-purpose

Prep work:

·         Weigh out all the spices in stage 2 in a small bowl

·         Mix the stock cube in with the 50ml of lukewarm water until fully dissolved.

·         Blend all of Stage 4 - herb mix together

·         Open all the tins – ready to be used

Tomato base method:

Tomato base can be made a day in advance ready for step 5 of this recipe.

1.       In a large pan on a medium to high heat, fry the onions with the oil for 3-5 minutes or until they go translucent.

2.       To the pan add all the spices in stage 2 (1 tbsp paprika, ¼  tsp cayenne, 1/4 tsp black pepper, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp thyme, ¼  Maggie cubes, 1 bay leaf) and cook for 3-5 minutes. If the spices start to stick to the bottom of the pan, add a couple of tablespoons of veg stock.

3.       Add the tin of tomatoes (400g) and 13g tomato puree in stage 3 as well as all of pre-blended stage 4. Mix well and let it cool down for 10-15 minutes on a medium-low temp. Every approx. 5 minutes add some of the veg stock to the mixture and give it a stir. Once all the veg stock has been added, place a lid on top and let it cook for a further 15-20 minutes.

4.       If ready to use straight away, keep it on a very low simmer and move on to step 5. If making it a day in advance, turn off the heat and allow it to cool. Place in a clean container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.  It can also be frozen – simply divide into smaller portion containers and freeze. Thoroughly defrost in the fridge the night before use.

Adding beans method:

5.       In a small pan on medium heat add stage 5, (1 can of Pinto beans (400g), 1 can of black beans (400g), ½ tsp of allspice, 1 tsp of all-purpose), cook for 5 minutes while continuously stirring.

6.       Once the beans start to soften, add 400g of the tomato base stew to the pan and mix for 2 minutes until thoroughly combined.

7.       The dish is ready, best served with bread or rice.