Egusi soup (melon seeds soup)
4
Easy
15 minutes
40 minutes
As I started diving deeper into African food and trying to reconnect with where I come from, I came across the word dawadawa. I found out that these seeds come from the African locust bean tree. Then I had this moment of realisation: I’ve probably walked past those trees before, without knowing they held food inside. These days, I try to look around me. I want to know the names of the trees. Because food is a way of coming home.
Ingredients
Method
- 290 g egusi seeds
- ¼ cup African red palm oil
- 1 onion
- 1 Scotch bonnet pepper, seeded
- 1 red pepper, roughly diced
- ¾–1 cup water, plus extra if necessary
- 1 cup vegetable stock
- soya sauce (for additional flavour, optional)
- 10 g dawadawa seeds (locust beans, about 2 pinches)
- 1 medium brinjal (aubergine), diced
- 200 g white mushrooms, sliced
- soya strips (optional, or substitute with oyster mushrooms)
Method
Ingredients
1. Make sure there are no stones in the egusi seeds and wipe them using a clean cloth or kitchen paper. Blend the seeds in a blender or food processor until you achieve a fine paste. You can add a little water if necessary to help blend them.
2. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the blended egusi paste to the pot. Fry the egusi, stirring continuously, for about 5–7 minutes until it starts to turn golden and fragrant.
3. In a blender, combine the onion, Scotch bonnet pepper and red pepper. Blend until smooth.
Add the blended vegetable mixture to the fried egusi. Stir well to combine.
4. Gradually add 185–250 ml water, stirring continuously. Cook over a medium or medium-low heat until the mixture begins to thicken and you hear a spluttering sound, indicating it is drying out (about 10–15 minutes). It should resemble scrambled eggs.
5. Pour in the vegetable stock and add the soya sauce (if using). Stir to mix. Add the locust beans and stir to combine. Then add the brinjal, mushrooms and soya strips (if using).
6. Allow the soup to cook for a further 5–10 minutes until the vegetables are tender and everything is well incorporated. Stir occasionally.
7. Remove from heat and serve hot, ideally with fufu or rice.
Cook’s notes
- The locust beans add a unique umami flavour, similar to fish sauce, but their smell mellows as they cook.
- Substitute the mushrooms with different types of your choice (I used oyster and button mushrooms).
Find more soup recipes here
Photographer: Livhuwani Ravele
Extracted with permission from Tamu by Jane Nshuti
There are no comments yet.
Comments