A Charlotte-area chef wants to introduce you to West African food. Here’s how you can try it.
Charlotte-area chef Awo Amenumey wants to see Americans as comfortable with Ghanaian foods as they are with Asian and European staples. Red red stew is instantly familiar, with black eyed peas as its starring ingredient, and soft, tangy balls of banku are fun to eat by hand. But nothing beats the appeal of jollof rice.
“Jollof is just that celebratory dish. You will not go to any occasion in Ghana – a wedding, an engagement party, naming ceremony or a funeral – without some type of jollof on the menu,” said Amenumey, who lives in Concord.
Jollof rice is ubiquitous across West Africa. Though originating with the Wolof people of Senegal, most of the coastal nations including Ghana, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Cameroon have some version. At its baseline, it’s a richly fragrant rice stewed in a broth of tomatoes and other pureed vegetables, palm oil and warming spices. Filling, delicious and communal, it’s the kind of dish that can feed a crowd, making hosts generous and guests happy.
Going viral
While Ethiopian food has been popular in the US for decades, jollof rice is the first West African dish to break the mainstream barrier — thanks to a couple of factors.
In the early aughts, when social media allowed users from across the world to connect, a friendly competition sprung up across the diaspora. Children of Ghana, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Cameroon, living abroad in the US, UK and elsewhere, began boasting on who had the best version. The hashtag #jollofwars surged in popularity, drawing outside attention and piquing curiosity. Aug. 22 was declared World Jollof Day in 2015. And food historians laid claim to a centuries-old American version, connecting iconic Louisiana jambalaya to its jollof rice lineage.
Amenumey puts her own stamp on the dish, utilizing smoked shrimp, ginger and coconut milk, and pairing it with greens and protein. She started cooking when she was 7 years old, with her grandmother and mom back in Ghana.
“No one came to our house and left empty-handed or on an empty stomach. You eat and take more food home with you. It’s something that’s always been a part of me,” she said.
Upon coming to the US 17 years ago, she began introducing neighbors and friends to Ghanaian food. As their dinner parties grew, her husband encouraged her to enroll in culinary school. She started catering and in 2022 launched her company Eh Vivi, which means tasty in the Ewe language.
Where to try Amenumey’s jollof rice
Want to try it for yourself? Amenumey instituted a series of sit-down dinners and now holds a regular pop-up at Free Range Brewery in Charlotte every second Tuesday of the month. Pre-orders are required and sell out fast.
May dinner at Free Range:
When: May 9 at 6 p.m.
Cost: $25 (plus $5 each dessert).
How to order: Place your order online by May 7.
She is also hosting a full West African feast later this month at Old North Farm in Shelby.
When: May 28 at 5:30 p.m.
Cost: $85
How to order: Tickets are available online.
