The Great Jollof Rice Debate

There is a dish of rice that is the colour of a sunset.

It is cooked slowly in tomatoes and peppers and onions until every single grain has turned orange and soft and smells so good that people wander into the kitchen without meaning to. It is called jollof rice.

And there is an argument about it.

In Nigeria, they will tell you that Nigerian jollof is the best jollof, and that this is simply a fact, like the sky being up.

In Ghana, they will smile very kindly at you and explain that no, Ghanaian jollof is the best jollof, and that Nigerians are lovely people who are unfortunately wrong.

And in Senegal, where the whole thing began hundreds of years ago, they wait patiently for everyone to finish, and then say: we invented it. There, it is called ceebu jen, which means rice and fish.

The argument has spread all over the world. There are songs about it. There are cousins who will not speak of it at family parties.

But here is what always happens in the end.

Someone lifts the lid off the pot. The steam rises. Everyone leans in at once, and stops arguing, because their mouths are full.

The truth is that jollof is different in every country, and different again in every house, and the best jollof in the world is always the one made by somebody who loves you.

Goodnight. Sleep well, with a warm tummy.