Finally, the tomato scarcity
has reached its end as we now
have it readily available in the
market. It was a long and
hard journey for Nigerians
who had to try out other
sauces that did not require
tomato.
Nigerians are used to cooking
generously with tomato and
having stew splashed on every
food they eat. Some even add
stew to their Jollof rice in
order to enjoy it more. The
tomato scarcity period was a
tough time for Nigerians who
had to be creative with the
dishes they made in their
homes.
People explored various options
then while making sauces; those
who had parties during that
time sure had a difficult time
as they had to spend more in
getting tomato which was
scarce and expensive at the
same time. Tomato was even
more expensive than petrol and
it was war getting it too.
Sauces like garden egg sauce,
Ofada stew, Banga stew and
others were eaten more during
the tomato scarcity period.
Most homes also took more
vegetables as it was economical
for them to do so then. Things
were in a terrible state then as
fuel was scarce and expensive
with light not being stable.
It was unbearable for Nigerians
as they could not afford to
waste food during that period
because there was hardly light
to preserve those cooked food
items. They were spending more
on fuel and had to go for
cheaper things in order to
strike a balance.
Vegetables saved lots of
Nigerians from the tomato
scarcity as it could be eaten
with many staple foods. All in
all, Nigerians missed eating
some foods when tomato was
scarce. Find some of the foods
they missed making with
tomatoes:
1. Stew
There is hardly a family in
Nigeria that does not make
stew in one week. Some people
make stew on a daily basis as
the members of their family
may not be able to eat leftover
stew. During the period the
tomato was scarce, it was
difficult keeping up with the
requirement of the family
members.
Many Nigerians made stew using
tomato paste which is also
known as ‘Tin tomato’, they mix
the tomato with ground pepper
in order to make stew. Even
with the innovative method of
making stew, they still missed
the stew made with fresh
tomatoes.
2. Sauce
This is another thing Nigerians
missed making with tomato.
Nigerians enjoy making sauces
for different foods; some would
make this tomato sauce for
fried or boiled yam, rice,
plantain and other foods.
It was a challenge making
sauces for these food types as
tomato paste will not give them
the desired taste. What you do
not have is what you miss; it
was at that point that tomato
was scarce that Nigerians
wanted it more.
3. Jollof rice
Nigerians missed making rich
Jollof rice when tomato was
scarce and expensive. The
Jollof rice cooked then was
basically with tomato paste and
ground pepper as many
Nigerians could not afford to
buy fresh tomatoes then. Those
who bought had to pay ten
times the usual amount to get
half of what they used to buy
before.
All in all, it was a trying time
for Nigerians who were
frustrated and depressed at
the same time. It is a good
thing that we now have
tomatoes in the markets and
things are starting to go back
to normal.
