Sluttishly Vegetarian: Jollof Rice

I'll be honest: as a vegetarian, I wasn't expecting much from a trip to African Kitchen Gallery, a tiny restaurant in north London, butI was blown away by their jollof rice - and I mean that almost literally, because this was super hot. Various nations claim to have invented jollof rice - unsurprisingly, because it's delicious. There are endless variations, but the basic recipe involves gently frying tomatoes and vegetables, adding stock, then tipping in the rice and leaving it to soak up the flavours and fiery red colour.

Jollof rice (serves 2)
You will need:

• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1/2 red pepper, diced
• Tin of chopped tomatoes
• 2 tbsp tomato puree
• 1 chilli, finely chopped
• Vegetable stock cube
• 150ml basmati rice
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 2 bay leaves

Make it!

1. Heat a little oil in a medium-sized saucepan and fry the onion for around 5 minutes until soft. Tip in the red pepper, chopped tomatoes, tomato puree and chilli and cook for another few minutes.
2. Dissolve the stock cube in 300ml of boiling water and add it to the tomato base, along with the cayenne pepper, thyme and bay leaves. Bring to the boil, add the rice, then reduce the heat as low as you can and cover the pan with a tightly fitting lid.
3. Simmer for 25-30 minutes or until the rice is cooked, then serve with fried plantain, chicken, fish, or other protein.