The Nigerian pantry staples worth keeping in a Canadian kitchen are rice, garri, semovita, yam flour, palm oil, ground crayfish, stock cubes and a few dried spices. With those on the shelf, you can put jollof, a pot of soup and a swallow on the table any night of the week. Almost all of them keep for months if you store them airtight, away from heat and steam.
The catch is the weather: Canadian homes swing from dry, heated air in winter to sticky humidity in summer, and each season is hard on a different item.
The staples and what each one is for
Rice
Long-grain parboiled rice is the usual choice for jollof, fried rice and coconut rice, because the grains stay separate through a long simmer.
Garri
Garri is cassava that has been grated, fermented, pressed and roasted into dry granules. White garri is plain; yellow garri has palm oil mixed in during processing. Stir it into hot water for eba, the most common swallow, or soak it in cold water with sugar, milk and roasted groundnuts for a quick snack.
Semovita
Semovita is a semolina flour that cooks into a smooth, firm swallow, often just called semo. It is milder than eba, a good start for kids trying swallow. Golden Penny Semovita is a familiar name from home.
Yam flour
There are two kinds, and they are not interchangeable. Elubo is made from dried yam and cooks into brown amala, the classic partner for ewedu and gbegiri. Poundo yam flour, such as Ayoola Poundo Yam, gives you a quick pounded yam without the mortar and pestle.
Palm oil
Red palm oil gives egusi, efo riro, ogbono and beans porridge their colour and depth.
Ground crayfish
Dried, smoked crayfish ground to a coarse powder adds a savoury, smoky note to soups, stews, beans and native jollof. It is a shellfish, so mention it to guests with allergies.
Stock cubes and dried spices
Seasoning cubes or powdered stock, dried thyme and curry powder are the backbone of stew, jollof and peppered meat. Add salt last, since most cubes are already salty.
Rice, garri, semovita and yam flour sit together in the African Market’s staples and flours section.
Storing your staples through a Canadian winter
Winter is the easy season for dry goods. Heated indoor air is dry, so garri, flour and rice stay crisp and free-flowing. The risks are heat and cold in the wrong places.
- Keep dry goods away from heat. A cupboard above the stove or beside a radiator or baseboard heater warms flour and spices and dulls their flavour. A cool, dark cupboard on an inside wall is ideal.
- Expect palm oil to go solid. Palm oil is semi-solid at room temperature and sets firm in a cool kitchen. That is normal. Stand the bottle in a bowl of hot water for a few minutes and it pours again.
- Skip the garage and the balcony. Unheated spaces swing between freezing and thawing, and sacks stored there can pick up damp or attract mice.
For soups, the soup ingredients section is where you will find palm oil, crayfish, ogbono and dried fish.
Storing your staples through a Canadian summer
Summer is harder. Toronto summers are hot and humid, and humidity is the enemy of anything dry. Garri can clump, flour can smell musty, and crayfish can lose its aroma or turn rancid.
- Decant big bags into airtight containers. Glass jars or food-safe tubs with tight lids keep out moisture and pantry insects. Write the date you opened the bag on a strip of tape.
- Freeze ground crayfish. Keep a small jar in the cupboard for daily cooking and the rest in a sealed bag in the freezer. It holds its smell and flavour far longer this way.
- Give new bags a few days in the freezer. Many cooks freeze a new bag of beans or flour for a few days before decanting it, a common way to deal with any insect eggs.
- Keep palm oil dark and capped. Light and heat make oil go stale faster. If it smells sharp or like old crayons, it has turned.
- Seal your stock cubes. Cubes soften and sweat in a warm kitchen. Keep the box in a sealed tub or zip bag.
Whatever the season, trust your nose and eyes. Garri or flour with hard clumps, a musty smell or any sign of mould goes in the bin, not the pot.
How much to keep on hand
A good pantry covers two or three weeks of meals without crowding the cupboard. For a family of four that cooks Nigerian food most days, a sensible base looks like this:
- One large bag of rice, about 4.5 kg (10 lb)
- One bag each of garri and semovita, or poundo yam if that is your favourite swallow
- One bottle of palm oil
- One jar of ground crayfish, with a backup bag in the freezer
- A box of stock cubes, plus dried thyme and curry powder
- Dried beans, such as honey beans, for beans porridge
Restock when a container is a quarter full, not when it is empty, and use the oldest bag first. Spices are the exception: buy them in small amounts, because ground spices lose their punch over time.
The spices and seasonings section keeps stock cubes, jollof spice blends and Ducros Thyme in one place.
Frequently asked questions
How long does garri last?
Garri kept dry in an airtight container usually lasts many months. Throw it out if it forms hard clumps, smells off or musty, or shows any mould.
Why did my palm oil turn solid?
Palm oil is naturally semi-solid at room temperature and firms up in a cool kitchen. Warm the bottle in hot water and it will pour again, with no change in quality.
Should ground crayfish go in the fridge or the freezer?
Ground crayfish keeps best in the freezer if you will not use it within a few weeks. Keep a small jar in the cupboard and refill it from the frozen supply.
What is the difference between semovita and poundo yam?
Semovita is made from wheat semolina and cooks into a smooth, mild swallow. Poundo yam flour is made from yam and tastes closer to pounded yam, so it pairs well with egusi and other rich soups.