TRADITIONAL PREPARATIONS AND USES OF GROUNDNUT IN NIGERIA

Abstract

Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea Linn.) of the family Fabaceae (Leguminosae) and sub-family Palpilionoideae is widely consumed by people worldwide. It is so popular in the northern Nigeria where there were pyramids of groundnut in the 1950s and 1960s but because of discovery of petroleum, groundnut along with some other economic crops like cocoa and palm oil trees was relegated to mere crop. About 10 different foods were identified in our investigation from the three main tribes of the country Nigeria namely Yoruba, Hausa and Ibo. The dishes are groundnut oil, kulili, yaji, sisi pelebe, donkwa, kunu geda, chin-chin, groundnut soup, roasted groundnut and cooked or boiled groundnut. The uses and preparations of the food items vary from one place to another. The important of groundnut in Nigeria cannot be over-emphasized; in some northern states it a very good ingredient in folklore. In these places, it is believed to be ‘’women’s wealth’’ or ‘’women’s treasure’’. Groundnut, though nutritive it is also medicinal. Meanwhile, the uses and preparations of groundnut that were restricted to a place will be known to other people in other places.