As I mentioned in my previous posts, I currently work in a remote village where access to frozen (and even fresh) food items is restricted. Sometimes you simply don't have access to the 'best' ingredients. That shouldn't stop you from enjoying a delicious and very filling meal though, so I set off on my task.
Egusi soup is a popular dish in the Southern part of Nigeria. It's usually a rich dish containing dried and/or fresh fish, beef, tripe and cow hide. It also contains vegetables (popular ones used are pumpkin leaf/Ugwu and bitter leaf).
The soup goes well with morsel foods like eba (made from garri/cassava flakes), amala (made from yam flour), pounded yam, and even works well with white rice! I'll be enjoying my Egusi with eba (as it's also a very quick and easy meal to make).
Since I don't have majority of these ingredients (and hunger waits for no man), I decided to use what I had at hand.
Ingredients:
- 1 milk tin cup Egusi(melon seeds), ground
- 2 tablespoons ground dry chilli peppers
- 2 dried fishes (i honestly don't know the name. I'm terrible with fish names 馃槀)
- half a tablespoon of dried bitterleaf
- about 2 tablespoons dried crayfish, roughly ground
- 3 milk tin cups Garri/cassava flakes
The recipe makes roughly three servings.
Preparation:
Soak the dried fish in hot water for a minimum of 1 hour prior to use, then break the fish in to small bits, removing the head and bones (this ensures the fish is soft and clean). Also add hot water to your Egusi in another bowl, and mix well, dissolving any lumps.
Place a clean dry pot on the cooker on medium heat.
Add all your palm oil to the pot and allow to heat up for about 30 seconds.
Add the fish and Crayfish to the pot at this point. Don't mind the mess. Hot oil likes to make a scene 馃檲馃槀.
You have to be good at dodging hot oil at this stage 馃憖馃ぃ.
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Add your Egusi and water mixture to the oil. Remember to do this as safely as possible.
Add pepper, dried bitter leaf, bouillon cubes and salt to taste.
Cover and leave to simmer. Stir occasionally (the mismatching lid adds to the flavour 馃槈馃榿)
While the soup is in its final stages, boil water (I use an electric kettle) and pour in a clean bowl when it's reached boiling point (it's very important to ensure the water boils).
Add your garri to the hot water till there's no more water left. Turn it with a wooden ladle (I used my trusty wooden one) till its smooth, with no lumps.
After about 10 minutes on low heat, your Egusi is ready!
And that's it! Coupled with a bottle of cold water, you have a very filling meal that you can enjoy with a friend while watching a movie 馃グ. This right here is my favourite quick meal, for now 馃槀. I know I said it makes 3 servings, right? I kept the rest of the soup for later 馃槈.
I hope I get to cook a 'proper' version of this soup later in the future for your viewing pleasure.
Please like and leave a comment! 馃榿
