By Staff writer

It seems the best jollof rice cooked across America may not be by Nigerians or Ghanaian but rather by Sierra Leoneans and Senegalese who have come tops across four Jollof rice competitions held across America so far.

The @JollofFestival presented by @DemandAfrica will be heading to L.A. on August 17! Sierra Leone has won twice so far…who do you think will take the title in the City of Angels? Get your tickets while you still can! https://t.co/sse9gJTKJR pic.twitter.com/vrCmVeIZZp

— DemandAfrica (@DemandAfrica) July 29, 2019

The 2019 Jollof Festival is presented by Demand Africa and has so far been held in Atlanta, Washington, Oakland and New Jersey. Sierra Leonean chefs have been picked as having the best jollof at two events while a Senegalese, and Ghanaian-Liberian have won one each. The festival moves to Los Angeles on August 17th and in New York on August 24th

Jollof rice is a one-pot rice dish native to many countries in West Africa. Some consider it the predecessor to the cajun dish, jambalaya.

The Jollof Festival is a day-long celebration of the many variations of this dish, unique to the various West African countries that consider it a staple.

The experience of the Jollof Festival focuses on the pride West Africans exude in their native dishes.

Festival participants not only get to enjoy these foods, but get to interact with the festival itself by voting to determine the winner of the “Jollof Wars,” a head-to-head battle that pits one representative from each country against each other for the title of Best Jollof Rice