Garri is a dry, granular flour made from fermented, grated cassava that has been toasted until crisp and golden. To make eba, you stir garri into hot water until it swells into a smooth, stretchy dough, then serve it warm alongside a rich soup. At Jollof Bistro — The Best Nigerian Food in Kigali, garri is one of the most useful staples in the pantry: it becomes a hot swallow, a cool afternoon snack, or a quick side in minutes.
What is garri?
Garri starts with cassava, the sturdy tuber grown across West Africa. The roots are peeled, grated, and left to ferment for a few days, which gives garri its gentle tang. The mash is then pressed to remove liquid, sifted, and toasted dry over a wide pan until it turns into the light, sandy grains you can store for months. You will find two main styles: white garri, often called ijebu, with a sharper sour note, and yellow garri, toasted with a little palm oil for colour and a richer flavour.
Because it keeps so well and stretches so far, a bag of garri is the kind of thing every Kigali kitchen benefits from having on the shelf.
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How to make eba, step by step
Eba is the classic hot use for garri, and it comes together faster than almost any other swallow.
- Boil water and pour it into a sturdy bowl.
- Add garri gradually, sprinkling it across the surface rather than dumping it in all at once.
- Let the grains swell and drink up the water for about a minute.
- Fold and turn with a wooden spatula, kneading until the dough is smooth, soft, and stretchy.
Pinch off a piece, dip it into egusi, ogbono, or okra soup, and enjoy. If you are still building your pantry, our guide on where to buy Nigerian food ingredients in Kigali points you to everything you need to get started.
Soaking garri: the easy cold bowl
Not every serving needs a stove. On a warm Kigali afternoon, many people soak garri in cold water and let it soften into a loose, refreshing bowl. Add sugar, a splash of milk, roasted groundnuts, or a scatter of coconut, and you have a filling snack in under a minute. The finer, cleaner grind sold as drinking garri is milled especially for this, so it soaks up smoothly without turning heavy.
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Nutrition and tradition
Garri is, first and foremost, an energy food: cassava is rich in carbohydrate, which is why a bowl of eba can carry a working day. Yellow garri also brings a little of the colour associated with palm oil, while the natural fermentation is part of what has made garri a trusted, long-keeping staple for generations of West African households. It is humble, affordable, and endlessly adaptable, from village kitchens to city apartments in Remera.
Garri also sits within a wider family of swallows. If you enjoy eba, you may want to explore amala, made from yam or plantain flour, for a softer, darker alternative on the same plate.
Try it today at Jollof Bistro
Stock your pantry and let garri do the heavy lifting all week. Branch out with Elubo Flour / Amala Flour for amala, browse more staples in our African Food Market, and pair them with a pot from our Soups collection. Dine in with us in Remera, or choose pickup or delivery across Kigali, open every day from 8:00 to 23:30.
Quick questions
What is garri made from?
Garri is made from cassava root that is peeled, grated, fermented, pressed and then toasted until dry and granular. It comes in white and yellow palm-oil styles.
How do you make eba from garri?
Pour garri gradually into hot water, let it swell for a minute, then fold and knead with a wooden spatula until it forms a smooth, stretchy dough. Serve warm with your favourite soup.
Can you eat garri without cooking it?
Yes. Soaking garri in cold water with sugar, milk or groundnuts makes a quick, refreshing bowl, often called drinking garri.