Dish Spotlight: Tuwo Shinkafa (Rice Meal Swallow) From Nigeria
Tuwo Shinkafa is a delicacy that belongs to the Hausa tribe who used to live in the northern area of the country. It comes in the form of ball-shaped mashed rice or corn.
You won’t necessarily find mashed rice in other cuisines. Traditionally, people use short-grain rice but sometimes they also use rice flour.
It is usually served with Northern Nigerian soups: Miyan Kuka, Miyan Taushe etc. It also goes well with other Nigerian soups.
How to Make Tuwo Shinkafa
The rice used for Tuwo Shinkafa should be the a soft rice variety that becomes sticky when cooked. This is so that the grains can be easily mashed to make a mass of fufu (tuwo).
Ingredients
- Short/Medium grain soft rice
- Water (enough quantity to cook the rice till very soft and sticky)
- Before you make the Tuwo Shinkafa
- Rinse the rice in cold water and put in a sizeable pot.
How to Prepare
- Pour just enough water to cover the rice and start cooking at medium heat.
- When the first dose of water dries up, check the rice by mashing it between your fingers. If the rice grains have even a tiny resistance when you press them, then it needs to be cooked some more.
- Reduce the heat to low, add a little bit more water and continue cooking till the water dries.
- Repeat the process till the rice is so soft that it melts when you press on it.
- Once you’re happy, mash the rice with a wooden spatula by moving the rice in small quantities from the far end of the pot to your side of the pot.
- Fold the mound of tuwo and repeat till all the rice grains have turned into a mass of tuwo.
- Cover and leave it to steam for about 2 minutes.
- Mix thoroughly and dish serving quantities onto a thin plastic film and wrap them up. This wrapping prevents the tuwo from drying up.
