Souldeliciouz story so far…
By Joyce J Oboh
Chef/CEO of Souldeliciouz Ltd.
The Soul in Souldeliciouz has to do with the term Soul Food which became popular culture around the 1960’s in Southern America by African Americans. Soul Food is basically “Feel Good Foods” which are fulfilling, rich in flavour, seasonings and spices especially in dishes with rice, black eyed beans and Yams. However, Soul Food can be traced as far back as Africa and in particularly West Africa (Nigeria) where I originate from. There are over 250 tribes in Nigeria that all have their own signature dishes. I belong to the Urhobo tribe. Some of my dishes are a mix of Urhobo and Yoruba traditions with a little of Western twist.
While only spending my first 11 years in Nigeria I learnt a lot which I took over to where I am now, in London, England. If you are from Africa then you may identify with playing cooking outside in the yard with used tin cans, making mini vegetable soup or stew in them on a little camp fire. That is how I learned how to cook.
Here in England, there are a mixture of Ethnic Groups and Cultures. I wanted to share mine and I remember the first thing I cooked in Food Technology class at age 11 in school was Jollof rice. It might have been a little spicy, though it was thoroughly enjoyed by my teacher and peers. Learning to cook other different cultured foods as well as my own became a Passion.
Through my settling in London I became fascinated with the Jamaican culture and the way they prepare their foods. Some of my very close friends are of Jamaican decent and I was very fortunate enough to have learnt some proper traditional Jamaican cooking from them. I have mixed both Nigerian and Jamaica’s most popular cultured foods by adding Suya pepper to Jerk chicken.
So, the “deliciouz” part of Souldeliciouz is just as it states but with a zing. My Soul Food creations are not just delicious but Deliciouz right to the tip of your tongue to the inside of your tummy.
Cooking has always been a passion of mine. Cooking Tasty foods was luckily passed on to me from my Late Grandmother and Late Mother who loved to cook up a storm in the Kitchen. My late Mother had her own little shop selling snacks such as homemade chin chin, meat pies and scotch eggs.
Now 28 years since her passing I have continued her legacy by bringing and sharing Souldeliciouz foods and recipes with the World. I have been creating many dishes passed onto me by my late Grand-Mother and my late Mother and I have also come up with new continental dishes to keep Souldeliciouz Customers very happy. Those customers that I have had the pleasure to cater for will know I pride myself with making them very happy and content with their Souldeliciouz meals. I hope when you choose Souldeliciouz for your events, it will be a soul-fulfilling act.
We also have ranges of bespoke sauces and spices that will be available for purchase on the website and at some local convenient stores should you want to replicate what you have experienced. Please look out for updates of the store information on our Facebook page, Twitter and Instagram.
We welcome you to contact us should you have a local store near you that may be interested in stocking our sauces and spices. Just drop us an email with their details and we will send you a little gift to say thank you.
I hope you enjoy Souldelciouz’s journey.