Nigerian Pancake (Diet)
Aperçu
The Nigerian pancake, known colloquially as diet, is thin, dense and slightly crisp at the edges, and it is savoury as often as it is sweet. Onion and ground pepper go into the batter alongside the sugar, which produces something no other pancake tradition attempts: sweet, savoury and faintly hot in the same mouthful. It sits a long way from the thick fluffy pancake of the American breakfast table. There is no raising agent and no attempt at height. The batter is loose, the pan is tilted to spread it thin, and the result has a dense bite and a lacy edge. Nigerians eat it at breakfast with tea, and just as readily as an afternoon snack with a cold drink. What it is served with follows the same double logic as the batter. Honey, sugar, condensed milk, peanut butter and fresh fruit on the sweet side; pap, custard, oats and yogurt drinks such as kunu aya or zobo alongside. It is home food and street food at once, cheap to make from things most Nigerian kitchens already hold, and it belongs to no particular region of the country, which is unusual enough to be worth noting.
Ingrédients
Les mentions alimentaires sont fournies par les contributeurs à titre indicatif. Elles ne sont pas vérifiées par AFN et dépendent des produits que vous achetez. En cas d’allergie grave, vérifiez vous-même chaque ingrédient. Cuisine, allergies et votre propre jugement
Préparation
- 1
Put the margarine in a small bowl and melt it in the microwave, or set the bowl in a larger bowl of hot water.
- 2
Break the two eggs into the melted margarine and beat until smooth. Add half a cup of water.
- 3
Add the flour and mix well until there are minimal lumps.
- 4
Add the salt, sugar, minced onions, pepper, nutmeg and the milk.
- 5
Gradually add the remaining water while stirring, until the batter is smooth and runny. A blender gives the smoothest result. The lighter the batter, the thinner the pancakes.
- 6
Set a frying pan over medium heat and add a few drops of vegetable oil.
- 7
Pour in some batter and tilt the pan so it coats the surface evenly.
- 8
Cook on one side for 1 minute, shaking the pan occasionally until the pancake comes loose.
- 9
Flip and cook the other side.
- 10
The pancake is done when both sides are light brown.
Notes de l’Africook
Notes personnelles de Jennifer Ezeokoli- Thin batter is the whole objective. If the pancakes are coming out thick and heavy, add water rather than adjusting anything else.
- Blend the batter rather than whisking it if you can. It disperses the onion and pepper evenly and eliminates lumps, and the texture is noticeably better for it.
- Grease lightly. A few drops of oil is right; a coated pan fries the batter rather than setting it and you lose the lacy edge.
- Let the batter rest 10 minutes before the first pancake if you have time. The flour hydrates and the pancakes hold together better.
- They keep 2 to 3 days in an airtight container in the fridge and reheat in about 20 seconds in a microwave.
Questions fréquentes
Why are there onions and pepper in a pancake?
Because the Nigerian pancake is deliberately both sweet and savoury. The sugar, the ground pepper and the minced onion are all in the batter together, producing a pancake that is faintly sweet, faintly hot and genuinely savoury at once. It is not a variation on a sweet pancake with additions; that combination is the dish.
What is the difference between Nigerian and American pancakes?
Structure and flavour. Nigerian pancakes are thin, dense and slightly crisp at the edge, made from a loose batter with no raising agent. American pancakes are thick, light and fluffy, raised with baking powder. Nigerian pancakes can be savoury or sweet; American ones are almost always sweet and topped with syrup or butter.
What is Nigerian pancake served with?
Sweet accompaniments include honey, sugar, condensed milk, peanut butter and fresh fruit. On the drinks side it is paired with tea, coffee, pap, custard, oats, or cold drinks such as kunu aya and zobo. It is eaten at breakfast and equally often as an afternoon snack.
Can I make the batter ahead of time?
Yes, and resting it improves the result. The batter keeps overnight in the fridge, and the flour hydrating fully makes the pancakes hold together better. Stir it well before use, since it separates on standing, and check the consistency, because it thickens as it sits and may need a little water.
Avis
4 avis
Vous Aimerez Aussi
Voir toutes les recettes Nigeria →
Edo Black Soup
Nigerian Fisherman Soup
Igbo Yam Porridge
Herh, putting minced onion inside pancake batter sounded strange to me because back home in Cape Coast we don't do that oo. But I blended the onions real smooth with the milk and water like you said and the sweet savory taste with the scotch bonnet is actually nice paa. My fingers are still burning from chopping the pepper though.
Had to pop down to the local Afro-Caribbean grocer to pick up fresh Scotch bonnets for this. I was a bit sceptical about putting blended onions into a pancake mix, but using a liquidiser made the batter completely smooth and runny. They turned out wonderfully thin, though I had to go easy on the chilli for the kids.
Made these for Suhoor early this morning since we needed something fast before the fast started. That combination of nutmeg, sugar and ground chilli pepper is quite unique. You really have to get the batter very runny like you mentioned or they turn out too thick in the pan.
Baie lekker kick to these! Whisked the evaporated milk, nutmeg and scotch bonnet right in the blender to make the batter super smooth. Quick to fry up in the pan for a Sunday snack.