Fura da nono

Ingredients

Nono (fermented milk)

• 1.5 litresfresh whole cow’s milk, raw or gently pasteurised
• 3 tbsplive nono or plain live yoghurt, as a starter
• 1clean calabash or glass jar with a cloth cover

Fura (millet balls)

• 400 gmillet flour, finely milled
• 30 gfresh ginger, peeled
• 1 tspcloves
• 1 tspblack peppercorns
• ½ tspgrains of selim or a pinch of chilli (optional)
• 1 tspsalt
• About 200 ml warm water
• Extra 60 g millet flour, for the second pounding

To serve

• 4 tbspsugar, or to taste
• 1large calabash bowl and a wooden spoon
• Ice, if you have it

Directions

1. Make the nono a day ahead. Warm the milk to about 40°C (105°F), stir in the starter, pour it into the calabash or jar, cover with a cloth and leave at 25–30°C (75–85°F) for 12–24 hours until it has set, separated slightly and tastes cleanly sour.
2. Chill the nono and, if you want it in the traditional style, skim off some of the cream from the top; the classic drink is made with the thinner soured milk underneath.
3. Pound the ginger, cloves, peppercorns and grains of selim in a mortar to a fine paste or powder, and sieve out any fibre.
4. Mix the millet flour with the spice paste and the salt, then add warm water little by little, working with your hands, until you have a stiff dough that just holds together when squeezed. It should not be sticky.
5. Roll the dough into balls the size of a small orange, about 80 g each, pressing them firmly so they do not fall apart.
6. Drop the balls into a pot of boiling water and cook for 15–20 minutes, until they float and are firm right through, with no dry floury centre when one is broken open.
7. Lift them out and, while they are still very hot, pound them one at a time in a wooden mortar with a pestle, sprinkling in the extra dry millet flour, until each is smooth, elastic and free of lumps. This second pounding is what gives fura its texture and it must be done hot.
8. Roll the pounded dough back into smooth balls and dust them lightly with flour. They keep a day at room temperature and are often sold like this in the market, ready to be mixed.
9. To serve, crumble one fura ball into a wide bowl, pour over 300–350 ml of cold nono, add sugar to taste and work it with a spoon or the hand until the millet has broken down into the milk and the drink is thick, speckled and just pourable.
10. Swirl it, taste for sweetness and drink it cold from the bowl, straight down. It sits somewhere between a drink and a meal and is often the whole of a working lunch.

Technique

• Fura and nono are sold as two separate things and combined only at the moment of drinking, which is why the market seller has a bowl of milk in one hand and a tray of dough balls in the other.
• The double cooking and pounding is the whole technique: boiling sets the millet, and pounding it while scalding hot gelatinises the starch and gives the smooth, slightly stretchy texture. Pounded cold, it stays grainy.
• This is a Hausa and Fulani staple across northern Nigeria and Niger, especially valued in the heat and during Ramadan, since it rehydrates, cools and feeds in one bowl.
• Raw milk fermentation carries real risk if the milk or the vessel is not clean. Use gently pasteurised milk and a scalded jar unless you are certain of the source, and keep the finished nono chilled.

Substitutions

• No nono: plain live yoghurt thinned with cold water to a pourable consistency, or kefir, gives a very close result.
• Millet flour can be replaced by fine sorghum flour; the flavour is slightly sweeter and less earthy.
• No mortar and pestle: work the hot boiled balls in a stand mixer with a dough hook, or knead them hard in a bowl with a wooden spoon while wearing gloves, adding the dry flour gradually.

Variations

• Fura da nono sweetened with honey rather than sugar, in rural areas.
• Kunun zaki, a related but thinner spiced millet drink, sold alongside it.
• Fura balls eaten plain with a bowl of nono on the side, dipped rather than mixed.

History

Fulani herders sell nono, soured cow’s milk, from calabashes; balls of spiced millet dough are crumbled into it, making a portable meal for travellers.

Frequently asked questions

What is Fura da nono?

Fura da nono is a drink from Niger: spiced millet dough balls swirled into tangy fermented milk. Fulani herders sell nono, soured cow’s milk, from calabashes; balls of spiced millet dough are crumbled into it, making a portable meal for travellers.

How long does Fura da nono take to make?

Fura da nono takes 40 min of preparation and 12–24 hr for the milk plus 30 min of cooking. The recipe makes 4 servings. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Fura da nono?

Yes, within limits. No nono: plain live yoghurt thinned with cold water to a pourable consistency, or kefir, gives a very close result. Millet flour can be replaced by fine sorghum flour; the flavour is slightly sweeter and less earthy. No mortar and pestle: work the hot boiled balls in a stand mixer with a dough hook, or knead them hard in a bowl with a wooden spoon while wearing gloves, adding the dry flour gradually.

What is the most important thing to get right in Fura da nono?

Roll the dough into balls the size of a small orange, about 80 g each, pressing them firmly so they do not fall apart.