Ayamase Sauce
Nigeria
Rising Cook
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Ayamase is the green pepper stew of southwestern Nigeria, known widely as designer stew, and it is the sibling of ofada stew rather than a version of it. The difference is the pepper: ofada uses red bell peppers and tomatoes and comes out red; ayamase uses green bell peppers and unripe scotch bonnets and comes out dark green. Bleached palm oil is what defines the technique. The oil is heated until it stops being red and turns clear, which changes its flavour entirely, removing the sweetness and leaving something deeper and more savoury. It is a step that fills a kitchen with smoke and it cannot be skipped without producing a different sauce. The rest is southwestern Nigerian cooking at full strength: locust beans for fermented depth, ground crayfish, assorted meat including tripe and cow skin, and whole hard eggs that sit in the sauce and take on its flavour. The sign that it is finished is the oil floating to the surface. It is served with ofada rice, the local short-grain rice, or with white rice or rice and beans, and it appears at parties and in restaurants as much as at home.
Ayamase is a southwestern Nigerian stew distinguished from ofada stew by its use of green bell peppers and unripe scotch bonnets rather than red peppers and tomatoes. It is widely known as designer stew.
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Blend all the peppers in a food processor to a chunky texture rather than a smooth purée.
Sauté the chopped onions and locust beans in the bleached palm oil for 3 minutes.
Pour in the pepper mix, combine, and let it fry for about 10 to 15 minutes depending on your heat.
Stir and add the seasoning, the protein, the meat stock and the crayfish. Add a little water to loosen it if needed.
Stir together, cover and cook for 5 minutes.
When the oil starts to float to the surface, the ayamase is ready.
Serve with rice and beans, ofada rice or white rice.
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