Cuisine
Nigerian Cuisine to the World: Yewande Komolafe is set to launch her Cookbook in Lagos
This fall, writer, recipe developer and food stylist Yewande Komolafe releases her highly anticipated cookbook titled ‘My Everyday Lagos: Nigerian Cooking at Home and in the Diaspora‘ on October 24th, 2023. (Ten Speed Press, $35). In this stunning book, Yewande blends the formative years of her upbringing in Nigeria’s biggest city, Lagos, with her personal journey of self-discovery in New York, to offer an exploration of and beginner’s guide to understanding and cooking Nigerian food.
As a longtime chef and cooking columnist for the New York Times, Yewande is known for her work introducing Nigerian cuisine to wider audiences. With 75 recipes, informative essays and personal stories, My Everyday Lagos, celebrates the many cuisines found in Lagos, and continues her work to introduce Nigerian cuisine to kitchens around the world.
Yewande is Berlin-born, Lagos-raised and Brooklyn-based. Immigrating to the United States in 1998, she spent years working in fine dining restaurants around the country (and was one of the first employees of Momofuku Milk Bar), before transitioning to food media. Now a staff writer at the New York Times, Yewande authored the popular feature “10 Essential Nigerian Recipes” and publishes a monthly column with recipes.
My Everyday Lagos is the definitive book on Lagos cuisine. With 75 recipes, Yewande takes readers through a full week of Lagos’s culinary life, including early morning meals at home, afternoon meals at bukas (dining spaces outside the home), festive weekend celebrations, refreshing beverages, and more. Additionally, she shares comprehensive guides on essential Nigerian flavors, and informative essays with historical and geographical context for ingredients.
Recipes include:
● Condiments, Dried Spice Blends, and Basic Starter Sauces: Agoyin Sauce (Dried Chile Oil); Omotunde’s Spice Blend; Toasted Peppersoup Spice; Ucha (Creamy Red Palm Oil Sauce).
● Meals to Start Your Day: Kunun Aya (Tigernut Milk); Agege Bread; Eko (Fermented Cornstarch Porridge); Garden Egg Stew; Stewed Sardines.
● Small Chops and Street Food: Crushed Yam Fritters; Wara with Yaji (Deep-Fried Cheese Curds); Beef Suya; Puff Puff.
● Daytime: Weekday Meals and the Buka Menu: Iwuk Edesi with Chicken (One-Pot Native Rice with Chicken); Dad’s Alapa with Fresh Catfish and Dumplings; Crispy Fried Tilapia; Peppersoup with Short Ribs; Edika Ikong (Ugwu and Waterleaf Soup).
● Weekends: Ceremonial Foods and Offerings: Jollof Rice; Braised Goat Leg in Obe; Mom’s Sunday Chicken with Coconut Rice; Fisherman’s Stew.
● Sweets: Coconut Milk Caramels; Danqua/Dankwa; Kanjika with Fruit; Tapioca with Fruit and Lemongrass Coconut Milk.
● Drinks: Bitter Lemon Soda; Tamarind Cooler; Hibiscus Sisi; Palm Wine Spritz.
My Everyday Lagos includes photographs by Kelly Marshall, location photography by Lolá Ákínmádé and illustrations by Diana Ejaita. Check out Yewande on instagram for more information on her journey and her highly anticipated cookbook.
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About Yewande Komolafe:
Yewande Komolafe is a Berlin-born, Lagos-raised and Brooklyn-based food writer, stylist and recipe developer. Her highly anticipated cookbook My Everyday Lagos: Nigerian Cooking at Home and in the Diaspora releases on October 24th, 2023 (Ten Speed Press, $35).
After years working in restaurant kitchens around the country, Yewande transitioned to food media and her work has been featured in outlets like Bon Appetit, Food & Wine, Whetstone, Saveur and Food52, in addition to books Waffles + Mochi: Get Cooking! (based on the Netflix show), Sheetpan Chicken by Cathy Erway, and Why We Cook by Lindsay Gardner.
She is currently a staff writer at The New York Times, where she writes a monthly column and published the popular feature “10 Essential Nigerian Recipes.” Yewande lives, cooks and gardens in Brooklyn with her husband and two daughters.
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