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Obe ata (red pepper sauce): photo of the dish
Illustrative photo: Honeybee5512 — CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Sauces & basics

Obe ata (red pepper sauce)

A very spicy Yoruba sauce of red peppers and tomatoes, flavoured with palm oil. It is the essential accompaniment to rice, porridges and grilled meats in Nigeria.

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Ingredients

Ingredients

Spices & seasoning

Optional extras

On the side

Instructions

  1. Wash the peppers, tomatoes, bell pepper and onion. Chop them roughly and blend into a fairly fine purée.
  2. Heat the palm oil in a pan over medium heat until hot but not smoking.
  3. Pour in the purée and cook over medium heat for 15 minutes, stirring often, until the sauce reduces and the oil rises.
  4. Add the salt, shrimp powder, garlic and pepper, then simmer for 5 more minutes over low heat.
  5. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve warm or at room temperature with rice.

Variations and tips

Milder version. Remove the seeds from the peppers and replace half with extra bell pepper.

Using what's available here. If palm oil is hard to find, use groundnut oil with a spoonful of paprika added for colour.

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Original Ecomely recipe.