Hauwa Eva Graham was running a thriving restaurant on the outskirts of Abuja, the newly designated capital of Nigeria, when her son-in-law, an air force officer, was jailed for his alleged involvement in a failed coup against the Ibrahim Babangida government. She gave up her business to help her daughter Alexandra, who had her hands full with the fight to free her husband, three small children, and her position as a lecturer at Lagos State University. Alexandra’s husband was eventually acquitted but it was cold comfort as, over the next two years, numerous colleagues either disappeared or were executed.
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In 1989 the family fled seeking asylum, moving first to New York and then, in 1993, to Chicago. Alexandra, a chemist, quickly found work but she searched in vain for a new venue for her mother’s cooking. Then, in 1997, Alexandra’s friend Alpha Tense announced he was closing his Nigerian restaurant, Suya, and she bought him out. “I wanted to give back to my mother and also bring a taste of our country to Chicago. Most people think of Ethiopian when they think of African food but our cuisine from Ghana, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone is completely different.” She renamed the place Ofie, which means “home” in the Ghanaian Akan language, and it’s become a new home for Hauwa’s culinary explorations.
Each region (and to some extent each family) in West Africa prepares a different version of what Ofie serves as “Niger stew.” Most start off as Hauwa’s does, with a vibrant red base of pureed tomatoes, onions, and peppers to which a variety of ingredients are added. Hauwa adds large chunks of yam–a white-fleshed nubby root vegetable thought to have originated in Africa that bears little resemblance to the orange sweet potato popular in the U.S.–and a mix of spices and chicken or beef. It’s simmered until the yam is tender and the meat cooked through. Chilies are frequently added, in this case habaneros, giving it a blazing finish.
Ofie is at 3911 N. Sheridan, 773-248-6490.
