Stuffed Savory Nigerian Masa (Waina)- This recipe is a Northern Nigerian delight and it’s made by soaking a special type of Rice called Tuwo Rice (the uncooked one) in water for at least 6 hours or overnight. This Rice is then rinsed out and blended into a smooth paste before it’s now cooked inside a special pan which we refer to as the Masa Pan.

Northern Nigerian Masa
I have decided to make a savory version of this recipe because quite a number of people don’t like the fermented taste that comes with the plain Nigerian Masa (Waina). This particular recipe is a twist to the plain Masa and it eliminates the strong smell found in the plain Masa.
Feel free to check my former post on Masa (Waina )here for a more detailed explanation.
Notes:
Masa (Waina) is traditionally made with Tuwo Rice but in the absence of that, Jasmine Rice can be used and that is exactly what I used in this recipe.
I used the Masa Pan for this recipe but you can use a small pan if you don’t have the Masa Pan
Required Ingredients for making the stuffed
- enjoy while still hot and fresh with your favorite stew or sauce. Enjoy!

Stuffed savory Masa (Waina)
Ingredients
- 3 Cups Rice
- 3 tablespoons cooked Rice Heaped
- 11/2 Tablespoons Ginger
- 2 Tablespoons Yogurt
- 1/2 Teaspoon Baking powder
- 1 Onion Medium sized
- 2 teaspoons yeast
- 1 Teaspoon Salt
- 2 to 4 Tablespoons Sugar
- 1 Cup Water plus 2 to 4 more Tbs
- 1/4 Cup water to proof the yeast
- Dambu Nama for stuffing
Instructions
- Soak the Rice in Water for at least 6 hours or leave overnight
- Rinse out the Rice until it's clean and proof your yeast by mixing the Water with the Yeast and 2 Teaspoons of sugar then set that aside
- Blend the soaked Rice, pre-cooked Rice, Onion and Ginger together until it's smooth and creamy
- Pour the Batter into a very large Bowl, add the Yeast and mix it together and leave to proof for 6 to 8 hours you can as well leave overnight. The longer you leave it the more fermented it becomes.
- Add the Baking powder, Salt, Sugar and the Yogurt
- Drizzle some cooking Oil in your Masa Pan and once the Oil is hot enough pour some batter into the Pan about halfway full, immediately add the Dambu Nama stuffing and immediately cover this up with another layer of batter - this should be done very fast because Masa cooks really fast.
- When the edges begin to solidify, flip the Masa over with two skewers (check the video above) and once both sides are well cooked (golden brown) remove from heat and enjoy while still hot and fresh with your favorite stew or sauce. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Kareematu Saidu
Thursday 6th of June 2024
Can u make waina without d cooked one
Lola Osinkolu
Wednesday 7th of August 2024
I haven't tried it without the cooked one.
Aisha Bello
Monday 16th of October 2023
Why didn't my masa swell while frying even tho yeast was added
Chef Lola's Kitchen
Sunday 22nd of October 2023
This could possibly be because of how you mix it. Don't overmix the batter.
Tee
Friday 14th of August 2020
Thanks for sharing this, will give it a try and get back to you. But what type of yogurt do i use?
Shugee
Friday 24th of April 2020
My masa keeps sticking to the pan .why?
Mars
Tuesday 23rd of June 2020
It needs a non stick frying pan and low heat. It needs enough oil too.
Linda
Saturday 2nd of May 2020
Thanks Lola. Am in UK and today I decided to make suya for my family. And I thought why not search for masa ingredients and that was how I came a across your recipe. And I made it and it came out real good. I love the ginger taste in it. Thank you. Linda
Anonymous
Saturday 22nd of February 2020
I tried to make waina masa with rice, but the batter is not rising at all but rather sticking to the pot when i tried to fry it. Then d batter is really foaming inside the bowl. And after sometimes everything turned watery before i threw it away. This is my first trial at it. And i just got the local waina frying pan. Is it the pot or the local rice I used. Kindly help
Rash
Saturday 21st of November 2020
@Anonymous, same thing happened to me the day I tried using the common polished rice to prepare my mass,it was just sticking to my masa pan and foaming seriously and before u know it it turned watery so I had to pour it away,since then I use that tuwo shinkafa rice and it works perfectly
Aisha
Thursday 22nd of October 2020
@Anonymous, it is because the waina pan is new