By Precious Onwumelu
Party jollof used to be 500 naira per plate with chicken and coleslaw. Now it’s 1500 naira and they’re still giving you 3 grains of rice and prayer.
Food inflation is real, and Aproko Mataz feels it in our stomachs. A bag of rice that was 25k is now 50k. Tomato is gold.
But there’s gist here too: Nigerians are getting creative. People are swapping rice for plantain, for swallow, for beans. “Potluck” parties are back. Aso-ebi is being replaced with “come in Ankara,” and we’re going back to local dishes that fill you up for less: ukwa, banga, okpa, gbegiri. Food that the soil gives us without import duty.
Maybe this hardship is reminding us that Nigerian food didn’t start with basmati. It started with yam, cocoyam, and with what our grandmothers farmed.
Let’s eat smart, let’s eat home, and let’s stop letting inflation kill our celebration.
