Everyone, yes I mean everyone who has tasted any Yoruba delicacies can testify to the Yorubas undying love for pepper.
Like the way they consume peppery delicacies, you would think they are “spice-lords”.
There was a particular day a friend of mine cooked jollof rice for both of us in the hostel. I don’t know if I should call it jollof rice or pepper rice because I drank more water than I ate.
The rice was so peppery it burnt my tongue, my nostrils became temporarily blocked and my eyes were red with tears.
Like which tribe in Nigeria can prepare such spicy delicacies if not Yorubas?
Before you can see an Igbo man or woman request for Yoruba food, it is probably because he has become fond of peppery food.
One of the reasons that can be attributed to their love for pepper is their farming occupation from way back. Farming used to be the major occupation of the ancient Yorubas and pepper happened to be one of their produce. The Yoruba saying, “What you sell is what you eat” is very glaring in the manner with which they consumed pepper. Pepper, alongside other farms, produce like maize, plantain, beans, yam, and vegetables are mostly at their disposal.
Yorubas also believe that “a soul that does not eat pepper is a feeble one.” In other words, the more pepper you eat, the healthier you will become and thus, the longer you will live. They believe that pepper helps to boost the immune system and Truly certain peppers have loads of vitamin C in them.
Research by the US Public Library of Science helped discovered that eating red hot chilli pepper on a regular basis could extend one’s life by as much as ten and a half years. It did state that, “those who eat chilli pepper had a lower risk of dying than those who didn’t.”
Moreso, it is believed that consuming pepper in stew or soup especially when ill can help quicken the recovery process as it would help you shake off a cold, fever or even loss of appetite.
So the next time you visit a Yoruba friend and you’re offered food prepared by them, don’t be surprised at spicy the food tastes. Rather silently eat and prepare a full jug of water beside you.
Are you perhaps from Yoruba tribe? Then, to what extent can you eat pepper?
