About

The Vegan Nigerian is a platform dedicated to making Nigerian cuisine and the vegan lifestyle accessible to the mainstream - through online resources, workshops and bespoke events.

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Hi, I'm Tomi! I'm  a Nigerian-born chef and blogger living in London, with a never-ending love for food, travel, writing and cooking. 

On The Vegan Nigerian you'll discover heaps of delicious and easy plant-based recipes, many inspired by my Nigerian cultural heritage. I also share weekly cooking videos and vlogs. Stay up to date by subscribing to my YouTube channel. You can also get more regular top-notch content over on my Instagram, Facebook and Twitter pages. If you've ever been curious about West African vegan food, then you are certainly in the right place.

In 2018 I published Plantain Cookbook, which features over 40 plantain-infused vegan recipes. Then in 2021, I published Vegan Nigerian Kitchen, which features over 100 traditional Nigerian recipes with a plant-based twist. You don't want to miss out! Download a copy of my books from here or grab a physical copy from Amazon.

My work with The Vegan Nigerian has led to a lot of exciting experiences. Read more about them below and check out some of the press I've been featured in over the years.

If you need to get in touch, email me at vegannigerian [at] gmail [dot] com or follow me on social media @vegannigerian


More About Me...


I was born and raised in Lagos, Nigeria (West Africa). For as long as I can remember I have absolutely loved food. From shopping for it, to making it, to watching other people experiment with it on TV cooking shows. Like writing, it was somewhat of a creative outlet for me; a way to express myself and bring exciting food ideas to life. My mother taught me everything I know about traditional Nigerian food, having raised me and my siblings on it. From my dad, I learned cool co

oking hacks and flavour combinations that I still use till this day. It's no exaggeration to say that life revolved around food in our household, marking every special occasion and even the ordinary, not-so-special occasions. It was a fantastic environment to grow up in. One fond memory from my childhood was the time a summer vacation when
I recruited my siblings and convinced them to let us turn our dining room into our own little restaurant for a week. We hand-wrote menus, decided on our 'opening hours' and everything! Our parents were only too happy (and bemused) to play along.





Fast forward a couple of decades, I still love everything to do with food and get a thrill whenever I get to share it with other people. When I went vegan for reasons of health and animal welfare back in 2013, I was studying towards a degree in English and French at Oxford University. A career in food wasn't even on the cards back then.  It was during my year abroad in France that I started up this blog as a way to showcase all my culinary experiments. To find out more about my journey to veganism, I suggest reading my post on Why I Became Vegan. If veganism is something that you are considering for yourself, definitely download my free Guide to Going Vegan, which is packed full of useful information, tips and advice. I can honestly say that taking the leap into a plant-based lifestyle was one of the most important and beneficial decisions I have ever taken in my life.

That was six years ago. Since then, this blog and my culinary activities have evolved somewhat:



Everything that I do is infused with positive energy, love and creativity. My goal is always to have these reflected in my food and in the events that I host.

If you
 ave any questions for me or are interested in working with me, do drop me an email at vegannigerian@gmail.com or leave a comment on the blog.

Share your vegan Nigerian recipes on social media using the tag #vegannigerian

Love,
Tomi xx

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Press and Features

BBC News Tomi Makanjuola


vegan life magazine vegan Nigerian


vegnews vegan Nigerian
buzzed vegan nigerian
bustle vegan nigerian
vice vegan nigerian
vegan food and living vegan nigerian

Bella naija vegan nigerian





livekindly vegan nigerian

plant based news vegan nigerian





wicked leeks vegan nigeriantenderly vegan nigerian












32 comments:

  1. Hi there ! This blog is truly helpful for me I to am a fellow vegan I'm from montreal Canada and am married to a Nigerian .(meat eater)lolol its so nice to see an alternative to some of his favourite dishes. My favorite is jollof rice that I have already altered to being vegan. Thank you again and I hope to see more classic vegan nigerian recipes.

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    1. Hi Jessica, thanks for your comment! I'm so happy to hear that you find the blog useful. Jollof rice is also my favourite! Can't wait to share more Nigerian recipes with you :)

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  2. Hallo, i allready share ur blog all arround :D ... to Vegans and to ppl who eat meat - or African Food ... am married too a Nigerian Man, so am happy to , that i found ur blog, and pls dont stop to share with us, i got u on my list of blogs, so u can be sure i will visit it ... Greetings!

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    1. Wow, thanks so much! I really appreciate it :D

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  3. This is really nice, always wanted to eat healthy with our nigerian food, although I can't go completely green but this is going to be definitely helpful. Keep it up! Thanks for stopping by my blog.

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  4. here's my reaction to finding your blog on fb:::

    ok so, i just discovered a NIGERIAN vegetarian food blog. SHELLSHOCKED!..never say never Joy, NEVER say never! & NO I'm not sharing, its just doesn't feel right! meat-less pie???? come on!!! baaahhhh what's the world turning to? i'm even tempted to hashtag!!!!

    LOL. when my 'drama queen / vegetarians are crazy' moment is over, what i'd really like to say is well done for your creativity and doing something different. im too much of a meat/fish lover but now my vegetarian friends can try nigerian type dishes (ill share). i might even share some of the meat less dishes ive been forced to conjure up in playing host to them. fair play to you!

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    1. LOL! This is one of the funniest comments I've gotten so far. Halfway through your comment, I was already bracing myself for an insult or something haha. Thanks for the positive turnaround though :) and thanks for sharing it with your veggie friends :D

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  5. I LOVE YOU SISTER!! YOU are the bright shinning Star of Hope in the Nigerian Community i been waiting 4. May you be blessed. Yours Amuche.

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  6. i will contact you via facebook or twitter once you are on and let you know my contact, we absolutelly MUST get in touch and do some Brainstorming. LOVE2u

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  7. Hello from India. I am very fascinated by Nigerian food. I am a vegetarian and will look forward to your recipes. If possible please include some for diabetics. Thank you, very much for sharing your skills and knowledge.

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    1. Thank you for visiting and leaving a comment! It makes me incredibly happy to hear that you're fascinated by Nigerian food. I will definitely look into some recipes suited to diabetics. :-)

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  8. Wow, cant believe I found this, Vegan and Nigerian, fantastic! I am half Nigerian and I love the food with a passion, however, we dont seem to understand the term Vegan/Vegetarian, and most of the dishes contain meat/fish. I will be visiting here often. Please try to stick to Nigerian foods only, thats what I love! I am hoping to visit Naija for the first time next year, do they have any restaurants there or vegetarians?

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    1. Hey there! So glad you found the site and that you actually like it. Don't worry, I will be exploring a lot more typically Nigerian dishes as the blog progresses ;) I tend to stray into trying different recipes to introduce some of my readers to new foods or techniques. It's also fun to add a dash of Nigerian influence to dishes that are not considered particularly 'Nigerian'.
      So great that you'll be visiting Nigeria soon - be prepared for a ton of delicious authentic food. I know of one vegan/vegetarian restaurant that opened in Lagos recently and there is also a thriving vegetarian society. More info about both can be found on this facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/VeggieNaija?fref=ts

      Thanks for visiting!

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  9. As a Canadian I lived in Accra, Ghana in the mid 70s. We ate no animal protein at all (didn't really think about it as vegetarian or vegan..just ate as the locals did). I have fond memories of ground nut soup and fufu, plantain chips, roasted plantain and the best tasting fresh fruit ever! (I always hated watermelon, but it tastes so much better in Africa!). Eating more and more animal protein is seen in all countries as people become more affluent and then they get the rich mans diseases like auto-immune diseases, multiple sclerosis, coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, breast cancer, prostate cancer, gout etc. all unheard of in traditional plant-based diet cultures. With the internet and social media we are learning about going back to the peasant or poor man's diets that all our ancestors existed on with minimal or no animal proteins. My father ate no meat in Scotland until he emigrated to Canada and my in-laws in Italy only had meat at Christmas and Easter until they emigrated to Canada...my husband and I grew up with too much dietary animal protein and are turning now to traditional plant based recipes from around the world to undo the damage of the western diet. If you get the chance and have not yet seen the documentary Forks over Knives, watch it! Stay plant strong and stay healthy!

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  10. Thank you so much for having this blog available - you are a God-send! Although I'm not full-fledged Vegan, I am working on eating less meat in general. I love Nigerian food (especially my Mom's) but I definitely want to make healthier modifications. Again, thank you so much!

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  11. Hi Tomi,

    Thanks for the recipes and especially for the ad for Veggie Victory. I am in Lagos right now, working, and I have been eating from there every day. It's great to know my food is genuinely vegan, and I don't have to worry about finding fish bones in my 'vegetarian' bean stew!!!

    Gerry

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    1. Hi Gerry, thanks for the lovely comment. It's great to hear you've been able to try Veggie Victory while in Lagos. Yay for vegan options! :)

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  12. I am so excited that I found your blog. I am a professional chef and so happy that you write your blog. My two favorite Priest here in Maine USA are from Nigeria. I know that they miss their home. To be able to get insight on their cuisine, is so wonderful. I see that you went to Oxford, and speak English and French. So does my Priest. I hope you don't mind if I ask questions and ask what would make him feel at home. They mean the world to us.

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  13. Hi Tomi,
    I'm really excited to discover that there's a vegan Nigerian blogger out there! I'd love to learn more about what it's like to be a vegan in Nigeria. I write a blog for vegan travellers called The Nomadic Vegan, and I think my readers would be really interested to hear about vegan food in Nigeria as well. If you'd like to do a guest post and share your experiences, you can reach me at wendywerneth [at] gmail [dot] com. Have a great day!

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  14. Hi Tomi,

    Thank you for your work. Much appreciated. People that are becoming Vegan or Plant-based Nutrition are returning to their Ancestral Self Knowledge even if they are not aware of it. Ancient Cultural Historical expressions attest to this sayings.

    Peace, Hapiness and Love.

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  15. Hi there! I'm so glad I've come across your blog! Although I'm not vegan/vegetarian I have quite a healthy diet & I've started cooking more veggie based meals during the week. My husband is a British born Nigerian & I've began cooking a few Nigerian meals. I love how your blog offers veggie/vegan options.
    I'm slightly put off by the amount of oil that is often used & lack of veg in the Nigerian cuisine. We will be travelling to Nigeria this Spring & staying with family! Although it may be difficult do you have any advice on how I can ensure I chose healthier food options/meals while I'm there?!
    Thank you, Grace

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    1. Hi Grace, thanks for your comment! It is true that a lot of oil is traditionally used in Nigerian cuisine. For your time there, my advice is to focus on buying/eating as close to fresh as possible - you will have a lot to choose from in terms of fruits. When eating at restaurants, you are likely to find things like boiled yam, plantain which won't contain any oil. If you'd like to go meat free, go for things like jollof rice, beans (stew) and fresh salads. Might also be worth checking out Veggie Victory, a vegan restaurant on Lagos Island. Everything on their menu is vegan and you'll find healthy options for sure!

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  16. Hello, I am very happy and surprised to see that a Nigerian can be a vegan. I am detox specialist living in Nigeria and I find very difficult to convince people here how bad is for the body to consume flesh....hope to meet you one day
    Congratulations for your job

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    1. Thanks for your comment! A detox specialist - that's really interesting. Hope to meet you one day too :)

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  17. Keep the good work up Tomi, I can tell you Vegans make up the tinniest community even than the gays in Nigeria (lol). Do you live in Nigeria?

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  19. Truly inspired by your dedication and enthusiasm with your work mostly because it involves food, heheheh, Keep it up sis.

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  20. Ummm thank you for existing lol. I miss fufu so much but I struggle with making a meatless soup that has the same flavor as regular guru soup. So thank you for this blog.

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  21. Finding your web site very useful, thank you! I have been trying to stay vegan since Jan and your recipe ideas have been of great help! I was just wondering if you are doing any events I can attend in London in the near future? I don't see any upcoming ones on your website.

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  22. Finding your vegan Nigerian recipes was so exciting. I am about 98% vegan, very close now to totally embracing that way of eating. My daughter is also moving in that direction despite her doctor's urging that she not give up meat due to her low blood protein level. However, she's determined. On another note, she recently had her DNA tested. After learning she is part Nigerian, she's ecstatic; and because she's a fabulous cook, I know she will be even more thrilled with your site than I am--and I'm over the moon. Thank you so much for sharing your recipes. :-)

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