9 hours ago
Make this sweet, crunchy Nigerian street food salad all summer long
While there are endless varieties of fruit salad to make this summer, this vibrant pineapple- and papaya-packed one deserves your attention. It's a street food-inspired salad from Ozoz Sokoh's cookbook, Chop Chop: Cooking the Food of Nigeria. And like any fruit salad worthy of returning to again and again, it's super simple to throw together — and incredibly customizable.
Thanks to the addition of cucumber, carrot and coconut, it also delivers an exquisite crunch. It's topped off with roasted peanuts for added texture and a little bit of salt that mingles so nicely with the rest of the ingredients. You'll find Sokoh's recipe for how to roast them at home below. But if you're short on time, pre-roasted, store-bought peanuts will work just fine. 'I'm a huge advocate of capturing the essence of a recipe and being flexible,' she said.
That goes for serving ideas, too. If you're entertaining, Sokoh suggests deconstructing the recipe and setting up a fruit salad bar. 'It is a fun and delicious way to enjoy similar things, while everyone creates their own versions,' she said.
You can also include fruit that's in season or that suits your family's palate; Sokoh often works in passion fruit seeds and kiwis, her son's favourite. So go ahead and play around with endless colourful combos this summer — and year-round.
The following has been reprinted, with permission, from Chop Chop: Cooking the Food of Nigeria.
Street Food Salad
By Ozoz Sokoh
This street food take on fruit salad, sold in transparent packs accompanied by toothpicks and cutlery, combines sweet, fresh produce with toppings of condensed milk and skinned roasted groundnuts (peanuts). Sweetness comes by way of the pineapple and papaya, freshness from cucumber, and crunch from strips of carrot and fresh coconut.
For this salad, the fruit is cut into slightly larger pieces (about an inch/2.5 cm) that are often eaten one at a time, rather than mixed together. Feel free to make an American-style fruit salad of it by cutting the fruit smaller and combining.
Ingredients
1 cup chopped (165 g) ripe pineapple
½ cup (75 g) chopped firm but ripe papaya
½ cup (75 g) chopped watermelon
1 medium (orange) carrot, cut
1 small cucumber, chopped
¼ cup (35 g) fresh coconut chunks or shavings
½ cup (120 ml) sweetened condensed milk, for serving
½ cup (75 g) Roasted groundnuts (see below), skinned, for garnish
Preparation
In a large serving bowl, combine the pineapple, papaya, watermelon, carrot, cucumber, and coconut. Stir well to combine. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 8 hours before you plan to serve it.
Uncover and let the fruit salad rest at room temperature for 10 minutes before serving.
Spoon the salad into individual bowls, drizzle condensed milk over the top of each portion, and sprinkle with the groundnuts. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for no more than 2 days.
Serves 4
Roasted Groundnuts
NOTE: To remove the skins, rub the groundnuts until most of the skins come off. Transfer the groundnuts to a colander set on a tray and shake it so the broken skins fall through the holes. Continue rubbing as needed. Discard the skins and store the groundnuts.
Ingredients
4 cups (about 1 L) boiling water
1 cup (5½ ounces/160 g) raw groundnuts (peanuts), rinsed and drained
2 teaspoons fine sea salt
Preparation
In a heatproof bowl, combine the boiling water, groundnuts, and salt. Stir, cover, and let sit at room temperature (or, once cool, in the fridge if the weather's hot) for 4 to 8 hours. The soaking liquid will thicken and color.
Drain the groundnuts in a colander, rinse, and gently pat them dry— leave the skins on, as they protect the groundnuts while they cook.
Spread the groundnuts on a rimmed baking sheet and set aside to air-dry for 1 to 2 hours.
Microwave roasting: Cook the groundnuts in batches. Be careful during this process as the dish will get hot.
Place a single layer of groundnuts in a microwave-safe dish. Microwave at full power, uncovered, in 1-minute bursts, stirring and resting for up to 1 minute after each burst. The groundnuts will go from oily-wet to translucent and opaque. You might hear popping and crackling. The groundnuts are ready when some skins turn papery and slip off with ease and the nuts take on golden hues. If you split one in half, you should see patches of light brown. This should take 6 to 8 minutes total.
Remove the dish from the microwave and set on a rack. You will hear more popping and crackling as the groundnuts continue to cook, then cool, shrink, and turn crunchy, about 30 minutes. Repeat with the remaining groundnuts.
Oven roasting: Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Roast the peanuts on a rimmed baking sheet, checking them and stirring every 5 minutes until they're lightly golden brown and fragrant, about 20 minutes. You might hear the occasional pop and crackle. They may not look dark, but they continue to cook as they cool. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and set it on a wire rack. Let cool for about 30 minutes—there will be more popping and crackling as the peanuts cool and shrink.
Store the groundnuts in an airtight container for up to 4 weeks at room temperature, 3 months in the refrigerator, and 6 months in the freezer.
