Nigerian Pepper Sauce popularly known as Ata dindin, is a hearty stew that warms you from your head to your toes — made with bell peppers, Tomatoes, Onion, ginger, habaneros, chili flakes, garlic, and ginger. It’s fiery red, bold, and spicy.
How to make the Nigerian Pepper Sauce – Ata dindin
Ata dindin is a restaurant classic that is possibly one of the most famous stews in local Nigerian restaurants. Despite many ingredients, this stew is easy to put together. It smells heavenly and tastes even better.
The Nigerian Pepper sauce uses a few indigenous ingredients like crayfish, locust beans, and even palm oil. However, my secret ingredient for obe ata dindin is locust beans. Apart from giving the sauce a traditional flair, it also imparts a deep, earthy umami flavor, which makes the taste of pepper sauce unforgettable.
Many people turn their noses up at the idea of locust beans. However, the pungent smell disappears when they get into the stew, and they add the perfect umami flavor!
For the locust bean haters, feel free to blend it with the peppers no one will know. I do that for my kids sometimes!
There are other similar soups and stews that are well-loved in Nigeria like beef stew, Turkey stew, Catfish stew, but ata dindin is one substantial sauce that has a unique traditional flair, which makes everyone crave it.
We serve ata dindin with white rice, boiled yam, boiled plantains, fried plantains, bread, and basically anything. Honestly, anything 🙂
Notes:
- Using a food processor is advisable when blending the peppers. It helps to control the texture of the resulting pepper; it also helps to eliminate the use of water during blending. Most blenders, I know, cannot do this. However, if you don’t have a food processor, feel free to use a blender.
- I don’t bleach my palm oil. How I get my oil well heated up is by cooking the onions in the oil for an extended period of time. In that way, the oil is not only well heated up, but the onions also add flavor to it.
- Traditionally, a mixture of meat variety is used for making ata dindin; however, feel free to use any choice of meat or meat combinations you want: beef, goat meat, chicken, or fish.
- This pepper sauce is quite spicy; if you have a low heat tolerance level, feel free to adjust the heat level to your taste.
Can I use any other Oil apart from Palm Oil?
Yes, vegetable oil can also be used. You can also use a mix of vegetable oil and palm oil.
Where to get palm oil?
If living abroad, palm oil can easily be found in African stores, and you can also order from Amazon.
Where do I get locust beans?
Most African-Caribbean markets carry the locust bean in their frozen section.
Other soup and stew recipes you might want to try:
- Egusi Soup
- African Turkey stew
- Hearty Salmon stew
- Catfish stew
- Jamaican Oxtail stew
- Chicken Pepper soup
- Goat meat Pepper soup
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Nigerian Pepper Sauce recipe – Ata dindin
Ingredients
- 4 Red Bell peppers
- 2 Scotch bonnets (Habanero pepper)
- 3 Tomatoes large
- 4 cloves Garlic
- 1- inch Ginger root
- 2 tbsp Locust Beans
- 2 tbsp Crayfish
- 2 Tbsp Red chili flakes
- 1/2 Cup Palm Oil
- 2 Tsp stock powder
- 1/2 Tbsp Dried thyme
- 1/2 cup Beef stock
- 1.5 lb Beef and Tripe or any other meat of choice
- 5 Boiled eggs
- 2 Onions Blend one with the peppers and tomatoes and dice the other one.
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Blend the red peppers, Habanero peppers, Tomatoes, Onion, ginger, and garlic
- Heat the palm oil on medium heat and stir in the onions. Leave to cook the onions for about 10 minutes or till slightly browned.
- Stir in the blended sauce, cover, and leave to cook for about 15 to 20 minutes or till the sauce is reduced stirring occassionallyto avoid burning.
- Add the crayfish, chili flakes, salt, bouillon powder, thyme, locust beans, beef stock, and the beef. Leave to simmer for another 5 minutes
- Stir in the boiled eggs and leave to simmer for 2 to 3 more minutes
- Serve over white rice, pasta, boiled yam, boiled potatoes, boiled plantains, and more.
Notes
- Using a food processor is advisable when blending the peppers. It helps to control the texture of the resulting pepper; it also helps to eliminate the use of water during blending. Most blenders, I know, cannot do this. However, if you don’t have have a food processor, feel free to use a blender.
- I don’t bleach my palm oil. How I get my oil well heated up is by cooking the onions in the oil for an extended period of time. In that way, the oil is not only well heated up, but the onions also add their flavor to it.
- Traditionally, a mixture of meat variety is used for making ata dindin; however, feel free to use any choice of meat or meat combinations you want: beef, goat meat, chicken, or fish.
- This pepper sauce is quite spicy; if you have a low heat tolerance level, feel free to adjust the heat level to your taste.
Nutrition
Let’s Connect.
You can find me on Facebook, and Instagram. I love keeping in touch with all of you!
If you make this Pepper sauce Recipe (Ata dindin), I’d love to see pictures of your creations on Instagram or Facebook. #cheflolaskitchen
Brenda
Monday 22nd of August 2022
Can I use tin tomatoes for this recipe and if so how much?
Lola Osinkolu
Wednesday 12th of July 2023
Hi Brenda, when you say tin tomato do you mean tomato paste or tomato sauce? Please clarify.
Gbolahan
Tuesday 7th of June 2022
thank you for this lovely tutorial... being complaining i can't cook for months which made alot of girls took advantage of me. i'm so glad this helped.
Chef Lola's Kitchen
Thursday 16th of June 2022
So sorry about that, Gbolahan. Love to hear that you found it helpful.👍👍👍
Aramide
Friday 4th of March 2022
Tried this.... very nice. I switched up some quantities though. Still came out nice. Did not like the thyme though. Maybe it was too much? I usually don't like it un any food buy fried or j-rice. All in all it was really nice. Thank you.
N/B wld av loved to send a pic but can't see any app for that. 😇
Chef Lola's Kitchen
Saturday 28th of May 2022
Aramide, glad it came it well. You can reduce the thyme next time. You can also share the picture through the official mail.👍👍
Fred
Saturday 25th of September 2021
Salt and measurement is missing from the ingredients list. I tend to match the same quantity of the bullion power where salt is missing.
Svic
Saturday 3rd of April 2021
Why is that all these recipes never tell you if to try on low or high heat, but most especially of to cook covered or uncovered...these are the little things that make a difference uuuugggh so frustrating how they forget to include these things in their tutorials