Efo riro with chargrilled cabbage
Serves: 6-8
Prep time: 25 minsTotal time: 
Recipe photograph by Kris Kirkham
Efo riro with chargrilled cabbage
Recipe by Ayo Adeyemi
Efo riro is a classic Nigerian soup or stew; ‘efo’ meaning ‘green leafy vegetable’ in the Nigerian Yoruba language, and ‘riro’ meaning ‘to stir’. It’s enjoyed as a side, but also as a main meal in its own right, and can be bulked out with meat such as goat, lamb or beef, or also with fish
Serves: 6-8
Prep time: 25 minsTotal time: 
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Nutritional information (1 of 6 portions)
Calories
172Kcal
Fat
10gr
Saturates
1gr
Carbs
13gr
Sugars
11gr
Fibre
7gr
Protein
5gr
Salt
0.7gr
Ayo Adeyemi
Ayo Adeyemi is the executive chef at West African fine dining restaurant Akoko in London’s Fitzrovia. Born in the UK to Nigerian parents, Ayo has worked in Michelin- star kitchens around the world, but the menu at Akoko is a real reflection of his heritage, expertly balancing umami, spice and fire.
See more of Ayo Adeyemi’s recipes
Ayo Adeyemi
Ayo Adeyemi is the executive chef at West African fine dining restaurant Akoko in London’s Fitzrovia. Born in the UK to Nigerian parents, Ayo has worked in Michelin- star kitchens around the world, but the menu at Akoko is a real reflection of his heritage, expertly balancing umami, spice and fire.
See more of Ayo Adeyemi’s recipes
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp olive oil, plus 2 tbsp extra to brush
- 2 onions, finely chopped
- 2 plum tomatoes, roughly chopped
- 1 red pepper, roughly chopped
- 1 red onion, roughly chopped
- 1 scotch bonnet pepper, deseeded
- 30g tomato purée
- 1 Maggi seasoning cube (or stock cube*), crumbled
- 250ml vegetable stock*
- 2 sweetheart cabbages
- 260g young spinach
Step by step
Cooking indoors?
Char the cabbage on a griddle pan then transfer to the oven at 190°C, fan 170°C, gas 5, for 5-10 minutes until just tender.
- Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a saucepan and gently sweat the onions until soft – about 8 minutes.
- Blend the tomatoes, red pepper, red onion and scotch bonnet in a food processor until more or less puréed, then add this to the softened onions along with the tomato purée.
- Continue to cook on medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring regularly, until reduced to a thicker paste. Add the seasoning cube and stock, and season with freshly ground pepper. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for another 5-10 minutes.
- Cut the sweetheart cabbages into 4 wedges each, through the stalk so that the leaves stay together. Brush with oil and season. Ensure the barbecue is hot (if you are cooking the cabbage after the lamb and squash, add some more coals to get it up to temperature again), then cook the cabbage on the hot barbecue for 3 minutes each side, or until tender but still with some bite. If there are any particularly burnt outside leaves, discard these before serving.
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Add the spinach to the efo riro sauce and cook for 5 minutes until soft and wilted. Serve with the chargrilled cabbage.
*Use gluten-free and/or vegan stock if required.
