Food - Drink
The Ghanaian Braised Rice Dish You Should Know
By TALIN VARTANIAN
It’s hard to find a dish from Ghana that isn't served with rice, and that doesn’t mean just the plain stuff; there's jollof rice, rice fufu, angwa mo, and more. Angwa mo ("oiled rice") looks like fried rice at first glance, but it's actually a braised dish that is easy and fast to make, with a robust flavor from salted beef and hot peppers.
Angwa mo looks like a pile of white or light brown rice with chunks of salted beef (AKA tolo beef), onions, and peppers, and even though the dish is braised, there is little to no liquid in the finished dish. The liquid in the braise is a mixture of water, Maggi chicken broth, and oil, which is absorbed entirely by the basmati or jasmine rice.
To make angwa mo, chop two onions, dice a fresh red pepper, wash and dry the rice, then add three tablespoons of peanut oil to a pot. Turn the heat to medium, fry half of the onions until golden brown, add three ounces of the tolo beef, fry them together, and add one cup of fried rice; stir and continue to cook for two minutes.
Next, add a cube of Maggi chicken broth seasoning, the diced red pepper, and some salt, mix well, then add two cups of water, stir, and let all those flavors mesh for five minutes. Mix the remaining onions into the rice, cook for five more minutes, then serve the finished dish with sardines, meats, eggs, and/or vegetables.