My Food Journey Abroad: Ije Oriri Obodo Oyibo

I'm a foodie! Are you? Haa Haa Haa. Do not get me wrong guys, I can go without food because my principle for eating is "I must enjoy my meal to eat it" so I would rather go hungry than eat a meal I won't enjoy. So my blog today is about Ije Oriri Obodo Oyibo.

Oriri means eating, in a foodie kind of way. Hopefully by now you know that Obodo Oyibo simply means Abroad.

The one thing I miss about being back home is food. Yes foooood. I always tell whoever cares to listen that we have a variety of delicacies back home. Nigeria has so many tribes and cultures so even without leaving my tribe I am spoiled for choice of food.

Disclaimer - Some of these meals can never have an English name because it takes away the soul of the food so please just ask Google or that Nigerian friend what I am about to write about. Lol

First there is the general swallow, which is any starchy meal which you would take with a soup or sauce of sorts - here where I live it starts and ends with Millie Meal also called Pap. Back home I can have Garri, Pounded Yam, Amala (plantain or yam), Nni oka, Akpu, Tuwo and much more. These are just the swallow part oh.

Then you accompany the swallow with soups like Egusi, Afang, Atama, Edikang Ikong, Nsala, Ofe Oha, Ofe Onugbu, Ofe Akwu, Groundnut Soup, Ewedu, Banga and the list is endless. Then unlike my host country that can only have one protein per sauce - so it's either a chicken sauce, a beef sauce, or even a plain tomato sauce. Where I come from, haa, your soup can never be complete without a multitude of obstruction. In one pot you would have beef (or chicken/turkey if you prefer white meat), dried fish, stock fish, prawns, pomo, saki, bokoto and roundabout (you have to figure this out Heh Heh Heh), .

I can't even deal.

Then on to rice. Hmm, when you see rice served in Nigeria, you will not be in any doubt that it graduated with double honours from Havard. Haa Haa Haa. Rice cannot be served alone oh, if you are plain and simple you will just have normal tomato stew. But when you decide to have Designer Rice from Surulere, you may opt for Ofada stew. Then your stew will have obstruction of various sizes and colours. Plantain has to accompany that meal, then some oiless or jollof beans on the side. We will add cole slaw or salad to it as well. Sometimes moi-moi.

Our meals go beyond rice and potato that oyibo man eats. There is Ukwa, Beans & Yam, Beans & Plantain, Ewa Agoyin, Asaro, DunDun, Akara & Pap (not the Southie pap oh). Then bread, chaaai when you buy bread from Onitsha head bridge, then you know you have eaten bread. Not the characterless bread oyibo people eat. Then for those who just want to snack on something, you can opt for Oka & Ube, Abacha & Ugba, PuffPuff, Buns, Guguru ati Epa, Boli, Nigerian meatpie, Egg roll, Scotch egg and of course there is always a Mai Suya around the corner or you pay the price and go for Festac Suya (yes oh Festac Suya was always one of the best, I said it)

In fact, just writing about food makes me want to cry. I feel like I've been starved in this abroad life. Haa haa haa.

So I hope you understand better when that cousin visits from the abroad and starts giving out every clothing item they came with in pretense that they do not need them anymore - do not be deceived, they are only making space to carry more food. Also, you Ajala traveller, when that Nigerian friend of yours asks you to carry just one bag of foodstuff. Or when you look around in your CBD/Downtown and see Okeke's African store. It's not just an African store oh - it's Nigerian food. And yes finally you, yes you Uncle that likes to travel light and Aunty that does not like food smelling in your luggage do not travel abroad without carrying some Naija flavour for your friend or relative in the abroad. God is watching you oh. Haa haa haa.

If you are in the abroad like me, what local delicacy do you really miss? Leave a comment in the chat box. If you're living at home, wherever home is, what local delicacies do you really enjoy.

Don't forget to follow us on ije_journey - we're on Facebook & Instagram.

So till I bring to you another immigration story on blog, stay safe, keep well and have a great week. Ka Ijje Oriri gi di mma (May your Food journey be beautiful).

Ije.......the journey

Photo by ade tunji on Unsplash