food& drink
Catholic in a secular Nigeria, raised by parents who were part of academia. The community was predominantly Muslim, exposing her to varied cultures among scholars, researchers and expats. She had also traveled several times to the United States before permanently relocating in 2006. Ada’s daughters attend Chapel Hill schools and are avid athletes in basketball, volleyball and track and field sports. Haarachi Umenwaliri, 16, is a junior, while Lemachi Umenwaliri, 13, and Sommy Umenwaliri, 12, are both in middle school.
Jollof Rice
Nigeria’s national dish is rice cooked in a tomato- and pepper-based sauce with a rich flavor profile. “I was trying to figure out how to do it,” Ada says. “My kids love it, and sometimes they would be like, ‘Mom, you missed something – this doesn’t taste like the one you made the other day.’” Ada refined her process to become more consistent. Eventually, she would produce the sauce in large batches that she would freeze in portions. Friends began asking to buy those portions. Ada’s food production has outgrown her home kitchen, and she now produces it out of a commercial kitchen in Hillsborough. Ada’s mother, Beatrice Nebo, who arrived in the U.S. in 2020, also helps in the kitchen, and the girls help sample batches of products, give constructive feedback and place labels on the jars. “I rub my hand around every jar, putting love on it,” Ada says about smoothing the labels. “What I care about is making sure that it’s top quality, as we promise.” She creates the sauce by first sourcing locally grown ingredients, including peppers, tomatoes, onion and ginger. Sometimes, Ada drives to farmers markets in Greensboro to find Scotch bonnet peppers that add heat to the sauce recipe. “The vegetables are roasted before we cook them,” she explains. “The cooking takes a while, so it’s a very patient production to cook down the water content and make sure all the spices are at their peak before we start jarring.”
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chapelhillmagazine.com
September/October 2024
New Products
In addition to the Jollof Rice Sauce, which was introduced last year, Ada formally launched new products online in mid-August. One is a drink product popular in West Africa, a healthier alternative to syrupy sweet soda drinks. “It’s made out of dried hibiscus flowers,” Ada says of the ruby-colored infusion. “You cook the dried hibiscus flower with cloves, cinnamon, pineapple, the rind of the pineapple and lemon. You cook it for a while, let it sit, strain it and then sweeten it with pineapple juice and some honey.” In Nigeria, the tangy drink is called “zobo,” while in the Caribbean, the drink is called “sorrel.” “[It has] that tiny kick, but it’s also sweet, and it’s very healthy as well; it’s full of antioxidants and just a better alternative to what we have in the store,” Ada says. She hopes to find local apiaries to source the honey for the sweetened version and will also roll out an unsweetened version made without it.
If you’re someone who is interested in eating differently and expanding your palate… This is a sauce that ticks all those boxes. - Ada U m enwal i ri
Another new product is a gluten-free waffle and pancake mix made from an ancient grain called fonio. In its raw state, it looks like sand, but it cooks to a light and fluffy appearance similar to couscous and has a rich, nutty flavor. Ada says she uses the nutrient-rich grain to prepare savory stews or as breakfast porridge. “It’s packed with all these great minerals and nutrients that the body needs,” Ada says of the superfood. “And it’s a very good alternative for folks who are health conscious, who want to eat differently and not fill themselves up with the regular pancake/waffle mix out there.” Ultimately, Ada says, her goal is to become a nationally known brand. But for now, “it’s just baby steps to see how successful it becomes,” she says. “I’ve always been entrepreneurial. Maybe this is also a way to be of both worlds: I'm American; I’m also Nigerian, and this is part of a global sharing of my culture with the community that’s given so much to me and my kids.” CHM