Nigerian Yam Porridge (Potash, Asaro)

This Nigerian Yam Porridge is the perfect comfort food. Made with Yams and a few other easily available ingredients that make this dish super rich in healthy ingredients and packed full of flavors that will keep you wanting more. Like many recipes this one has many names and can be found in a number of countries including Cameroon where Yam Porridge is referred to as Sese Yam.

In Nigeria you might find people calling it Potash or Asaro. Depending on where in Nigerian one is from the dish is cooked differently. I have seen so many different variations that I decided to stick with the one my mother thought me.

Nigerian Recipes tend to be heavy with meat ingredients, even salads are made with meat but then there are dishes like Nigerian Yam Porridge rich with vegetables and yams that are traditionally vegan you could almost say. The main ingredients and the star of this dish is of course the yam, which is boiled before adding to the porridge stew and I would definitely say the vegetables. Those are the ones that give the yam porridge that comforting taste and consistency. The starch in the yam on the other hand makes the porridge creamy and rich. It’s important to boil the yams before adding them to the porridge to ensure that it’s soft to the touch once you have finished cooking.

Additionally, to the classic Nigerian ingredient yams, there are a few other ingredients that are classic for Nigerian cuisine that give yam porridge a unique taste. Palm oil and crayfish! While you can skim on the crayfish to ensure that the dish stays plant-based, the palm oil is defiantly a must and the ingredient that gives the porridge most of its color and taste. The crayfish is really optional but I’m a big fan of dried fish in any form and crayfish is a special one. The small dried shrimps are very unique in flavor and I feel they make every single dish very special.

I hope you will give this easy and delicious recipe a try.

Author: A Sweet Point of View

Cook time: 20 mins

Total time: 20 mins

Serves: 6

Dietary Information: Vegan Friendly Recipe

Ingredients

Instructions

Cut the yams into mouth size pieces and wash them thoroughly. Now cook in boiling water.
Cut the onions in cube size and fry in the Vegetable oil, add the garlic followed by mushrooms and bell peppers. (If you are using frozen Spinach add it now rather than later)
Now, add the crayfish, scotch bonnet pepper, Chicken Bouillon and tomato paste into a blender and blend until you have a fine paste and add to the vegetable onion mix.
When the Yam is tender add the Yams and the Water it was boiled into the other ingredients. Mix well and top of with Palm Oil and fresh Spinach.
Now, let the Porridge simmer at low heat and turn it from time to time.

For the Shells

500g Yams
120ml vegetable Oil
2 Onions
3 Tbsp. Tomato Paste
1 Tbsp. Chicken Bouillon Powder or Vegetable Bouillon Powder
1 Tbsp. smoked Pepper
80 ml Palm Oil
200g Portobello Mushrooms
120g fresh baby Spinach or frozen
80g Bell Peppers
1 scotch bonnet Pepper
2 Tbsp. Crayfish (optional)
1 Garlic Clove (optional)