pepe egg
Cooking was a fun pastime that Irene, Redeemed, Naomi, and some of the other older girls loved to do when given the supplies. They would cook fufu, jalloff rice, fish, chicken, rice, plantains, a red-bean and chicken soup, and eggs. Of course, included in all of these recipes were the mysteriously spicy Liberian peppers. They had no name other than “peppers” so I never actually found out what kind of pepper they were. But man, were they good! Fufu, as I have already mentioned in previous blog entries, is like floury fermented cassava-root dough served with spices and pepper soup. Jalloff rice is rice cooked with canned vegetables, tomato paste, hot dog bits (popularly known as “sausages” although they were really plain old hot dogs) and the pepper and other spices. It was one of my favorite dishes, it was so delicious!
Here Redeemed and I are cooking plantains and pepe egg. The peppers are mashed up and mixed into the raw egg with onion and then fried like an omelet. The plantains, which I have made twice since coming home, are simply cut into rounds and deep fried. Its flavor mimics banana but when cooked has the consistency of a potato.
Redeemed preparing plantains for frying
Me, Christie and kids
While we cooked the kids would come over and play their games and talk to us and try to covertly peek into the pot. After we were done I stayed and hung out with them. They tried to teach me a game but I soon discovered my throw-a-nail-in-the-dirt skills weren’t all that sharp. After my attempts, they would look at me, look at each other, and then laugh and laugh. While they were still trying to suppress their giggles they would all try to show me at once how it was supposed to be done- “Ellie, Ellie, like this. Like this.” Then as they expertly thwacked it into their circle, I would say, “Oh, like that?” and lamely try to mimic their practiced hand. It was worth a try anyway.
teaching me to play Nancho
Me and Hannah
Eric
Kehmah plaiting Redeemed’s hair
Throughout the day, all over the older and younger girls’ dormitories, the matrons and older girls would plait hair. Very much like the Nancho game, they would expertly and quickly braid, twist, curl, twirl, loop and weave their short hair in to beautiful works of art. It gave them something to do and made the hair beautiful, and stayed looking neat and fresh for about a week and a half. I even got my hair plaited once. It took a bit longer- but it was worth it and the little girls thought it was hilarious. “Ellie got her hair plaited!” They would giggle, and I had to laugh along with them as they stroked my braided hair.
Me in plaits
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