LounjeLounjePlan my week

Uziza Pepper Paste

Also known as Uziza Pepper Paste (Fresh Preserved Spice)

Uziza Pepper Paste is a convenient prepared condiment made from grinding fresh uziza seeds (Piper guineense) into a smooth, intensely aromatic paste with a small amount of palm oil as preservative — creating a ready-to-use form of the essential pepper soup and therapeutic cooking spice. Fresh uziza seeds, when ground into a paste with palm oil, maintain their full aromatic complexity and therapeutic properties far better than dried ground powder, and the paste form makes them

Uziza Pepper Paste, Nigerian cooking

Ingredients

  • A big cup of fresh uziza seeds (Piper guineense — African black pepper)
  • 2 cooking spoons of red palm oil — as the preservative carrier
  • Half a teaspoon of salt

Method

  1. 01

    Cleaning the Uziza Seeds. Sort through the uziza seeds to remove any debris or stems. Rinse briefly and dry on a cloth.

  2. 02

    Lightly Toasting. Toast the uziza seeds in a dry pan over low heat for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring constantly, until they become slightly more fragrant. Do not let them burn — the seeds are naturally oily and can burn quickly.

  3. 03

    Grinding to a Paste. Allow the toasted seeds to cool briefly. Transfer to a spice grinder or stone grinding surface. Grind to a fine paste, adding the palm oil gradually to help the grinding and to create the paste consistency. Add salt. The finished paste should be dark, very fragrant and slightly oily from the combination of the natural seed oils and the palm oil.

  4. 04

    Jarring. Transfer to a clean, dry glass jar. Press down to remove air pockets. Add a thin layer of palm oil over the surface to seal.

More spice blends & condiments