still IN THE KITCHEN WITH ABIMBOLA OMOLADE VI

PALM-NUT SOUP




Ofe Akwu which simply means Palm nut soup in igbo language is
a native Nigerian soup, popular in the eastern part of Nigeria. It's
quite similar to Banga soup(Delta style palm nut soup) & Abak
atama (Efik style palm nut soup) with the only difference being
the type of spices and herbs used in preparation.  For Ofe akwu,
you could either use just Nchuawun as i did in this post or a
combination of Nchuawun (Scent leaves) and Ugu "Pumpkin"
leaves . When you go to buy Palm nuts "Akwu" it's always best to
pick the right types to get the best result. There are usually two
types of Akwu sold by the traders: The "Agric''(which is fleshy
and therefore would give you more oil extract) and the
"Native"(looks smaller but is known to be sweeter). It's always
advisable to combine both to get the maximum benefits. Ofe
Akwu is mostly used as a stew for white rice in the east but in
some other parts, it's used as a soup and taken with "Swallow" i.e
Garri/eba, Semolina, Fufu, wheat meal, corn meal e.t.c.

Ingredients:::
• Fresh Palm Nuts (Aku) (2 Derica cups)
• Beef (Red meat), Cut in chunks
•Assorted meat ,Cow Intestines, Tripe a.k.a Sharki
• Crayfish, Ground
• sized Dry fish / Smoked Fish
• Stock fish "Panla" a.k.a.Okporoko
• Seasoning cubes. Crushed
• Red scotch bonnet pepper (Ata rodo), Ground
• Ogiri Okpei (Substitute: Dawadawa)
• Salt to taste
• A handful Scent leaves "Nchuawun"
• A handful Pumpkin Leaves-(I skipped this) (View full list and
pics of Nigerian leafy vegetables)
Preparation of ofe akwu

Step 1: Rinse the palm nuts 2-3 times with water then place in a
medium sized pot. Add clean water just enough to cover the palm
nuts in the pot and cook on the burner for 15-20 mins till the
nuts get soft. you can check this by biting into one of the nuts. if
it's soft, then its ready. Strain the liquid used in boiling out and
place the palmnuts in a mortar and pound with a pestle till the
skin separates from the kernel. Scoop the pounded nuts into a
clean bowl and add water into it. Squeeze and strain the palm oil
into a bowl
View the full palm kernel oil extraction with pictures HERE

Step 2: Wash and place the Beef and assorted meat in a different
pot. Add the Crushed seasoning, Pepper, Salt and water just
enough to cover the meat in the pot. Cook till the meat gets tender
leaving the concentrated meat stock within

Step 3: Prepare the ogiri okpei by placing it in a small bowl of
water. Mash it up to dissolve -Set aside.

Step 4: Prepare the stock fish (if using any) by soaking it in hot
water to soften for 10 minutes then rinse with clean water. For
the smoked fish or dry fish, all you need to do is open it up from
the middle, then remove the bone and gut. Rinse and set aside

Step 5: Pour the extracted palm nut liquid in a medium sized pot
and cook for about 10 minutes. Gently add the Beef and assorted
meat (Including the stock "Meat water").

Step 6: Pour in the Ogiri okpei liquid, Add the Smoked fish and
stock fish (if you are using any), Add the ground crayfish. Stir
and leave to cook with the pot covered for 25-30mins.

Step 7: Place the Scent leaves together and thinly slice with a
knife. Repeat the same for the pumpkin leaves "Ugwu" if you are
using any. Add the chopped leaves into the pot of soup and leave
to simmer for 5 mins.

Turn off the burner and serve with Boiled rice or your
favorite swallow.

ABIMBOLA OMOLADE
+2348188866735
abimbolaomolade9@gmail.com
www.ladesimi.blogspot.com.ng