Gizdodo (Gizzard and Plantain)
Lagos, Nigeria · View all recipes
Overview
Gizdodo is a portmanteau and a fair description: gizzard plus dodo, the Yoruba word for fried ripe plantain. Cooked gizzards and fried plantain cubes are combined in a spicy pepper sauce, and the two textures against each other are the whole point. It is party food and home food in equal measure across Nigeria. At an owambe it appears as a side alongside jollof rice, and it works as a starter or a substantial snack in its own right. The pairing with jollof is close to standard. Gizzards are the reason it works. They are muscular and dense, and they need proper cooking, about twenty-five minutes, before they are fried, at which point they become firm and chewy in a way that holds up against the soft sweetness of the plantain. Chicken gizzards are the usual choice and turkey or duck both substitute. The technique that matters is draining the blended pepper mix through a sieve before it goes in the pan, which removes excess water so the sauce clings rather than pooling. This recipe carries no quantities at all, which is common in Nigerian home recipes and is flagged here.
AFN Heritage Note
Gizdodo combines gizzards with dodo, the Yoruba name for fried ripe plantain, in a pepper sauce. It is eaten across Nigeria at home and at parties, conventionally alongside jollof rice.
Ingredients
Dietary tags are provided by contributors as a guide, not verified by AFN, and they depend on the products you buy. If you have a serious allergy, check every ingredient yourself. Cooking, allergies and your own judgement
Directions
- 1
Wash the gizzards properly with hot water, put them in a pot and season with salt, thyme, curry, onions and bouillon. Cook for about 25 minutes.
- 2
Peel the plantains, cut into cubes and deep fry.
- 3
Blend the tomatoes, onions, habanero pepper and green chilli. Drain the water off through a sieve after blending.
- 4
Cut the cooked gizzards into pieces matching the size of the plantain cubes, then fry until brown. Drain and set aside.
- 5
In the oil used to fry the gizzards, add some curry and thyme, then the onions, chopped bell peppers and the drained tomato mixture, and fry.
- 6
Once cooked, add the fried gizzards back in with some of the stock.
- 7
Check the salt, cover and cook together for about 3 minutes.
- 8
Add the fried plantain, mix well and simmer for about 3 minutes.
- 9
Serve.
Africook’s Notes
Personal notes from Jennifer Ezeokoli- Drain the blended pepper mix through a sieve. Excess water gives a watery sauce that slides off rather than coating.
- Cook the gizzards properly before frying. Twenty-five minutes is a minimum; undercooked gizzard is unpleasantly rubbery.
- Cut the gizzards to match the plantain cubes. It is not fussiness: mismatched sizes make it awkward to eat.
- Add the plantain at the very end and stir gently. Cooked in for long it collapses into mush.
- Use plantain that is yellow with black patches. Green will not caramelise and fully black falls apart.
- This recipe gives no quantities. A pound of gizzards to three ripe plantains is a reasonable starting ratio.
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