Gambia wins Jollof rice competition, beats Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal

Gambia has won the Jollof Rice Competition organised by the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) as part of activities marking the Jollof Festival at the weekend.

Jollof rice is a very popular food in Senegal, Gambia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Togo, Cameroon, Mali and Ghana. In recent times the food has made headlines over which country prepares it the best.

The competition, which featured Ghana, Gambia, Nigeria and Senegal, formed part of the “See Ghana, Eat Ghana, Wear Ghana, and Feel Ghana” campaign being championed by the GTA, under the auspices of the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts to promote local tourism on a global scale.

Gambia prepared the jollof rice with mustard, fish and other ingredients but without tomatoes, making their jollof yellowish-white as compared to Ghana, who used tilapia, tomatoes and other ingredients to make their jollof attractive and tasty, giving it a reddish colour.

The foods on display

The Nigerian and Senegalese chefs used ingredients they believed could make their jollof super and delicious.

The judges, who were drawn from Mexico and the Netherlands, said the judgment was based on criteria including presentation, aroma, and taste.

Gambians had “a fine presentation and a better taste for their jollof as compared to that of Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal, said lead judge, Mr Jan van der Veer.