The ogbono-egusi soup is popular among the Eastern people of Nigeria and is a great way to enjoy two of your different soup ingredients at the same time.
Here’s the recipe:
Ingredients
- Egusi seeds (3 cups)
- Ogbono (1 cup)
- Red palm oil (to your satisfaction)
- Assorted Meat: beef, shaki, ponmo – 1kg (2.2 lbs)
- Assorted fish (dry catfish and stockfish)
- Ground crayfish (3 tablespoons)
- Spicy Pepper and Salt—to taste
- Bitterleaf
- Seasoning
Note:
- Before you start cooking, soak the dry fish till soft and clean, and remove the bones.
- Grind the egusi and ogbono seeds with a dry mill. Keep them separate.
- If you have unground crayfish, grind them with the dry mill.
- Slice the pepper and set aside.
ALSO READ: Spice Up Your Weekend With This Delicious Egusi Pepper Soup Recipe
Preparation
1. Cook the beef, stockfish, and shaki till they’re soft enough to chew. For the very tough stockfish, boil it for 20 minutes and leave it in the pot with the hot water to soak for about an hour before cooking with the other meats.
2. When soft, take out the stockfish, debone, and separate into medium pieces.
3. Separate the fish and beef stocks in different pots; one should be for the egusi, and the other one should be for the ogbono.
4. Place the pots on separate burners so it can be faster. However, if only one burner is available, first cook the ogbono before the egusi.
5. Pour a cooking spoonful of palm oil, put in the ground ogbono, and start cooking.
6. For the egusi pot, put the ground crayfish and egusi. Stir well and add water if it’s too thick. Add palm oil after 10 minutes until you see the yellow color.
7. Add the bitter leaves and cook for another 10 minutes.
8. After the soups are ready, pour the ogbono into the egusi pot. Add pepper, meat, salt, and fish. Stir well and let it heat up.
There you have it! Your egusi-ogbono soup is ready for your tummy.
Watch the video tutorial below:
