DELICIOUS BITTERLEAF SOUP (OFE ONUGBU)

                                   How to prepare Bitter leaf soup

Delicious Bitterleaf Soup(Ofe Onugbu) Delicious and Bitter don't sound right together Right? I know but this soup is one that makes the two words work together Trust me. So on today's menu we have this delicious soup from eastern Nigeria. It is cooked with a type of vegetable called bitter leaf.  like I Said don't worry it's delicious, despite the name of the vegetable used. The bitter leaf is washed till most of the bitterness goes off. you need to let some of the bitterness hang around though, because that's what gives the dish it's unique taste.

Different Ethnic groups in eastern Nigeria cook with this vegetable but in different ways. It is a delicacy for the Anambra people and some parts of Imo that share borders with Anambra like Arondizuogu people. The Ibibio's call there brasses not sure of the spelling please correct me if you know the spelling. But theirs is cooked mixed with another vegetable like UGU (pumpkin leaves)

This version of bitter leaf soup, requires some special ingredients like ogiri, and a thickening agent usually boiled and pounded cocoyam, achi from the Brachystegia eurycoma plant  or mkpuru ofo from the deuterium macrocarpum plant. I would be using ground mkpuru ofo for this recipe.

INGREDIENTS

  

Assorted meats

• 500 g Meat Precooked
• 800 g Cow/beef foot Precooked
• 500 g Stock fish Precooked
• 1-2 Dry fish

Other ingredients

• 250 g Bitter leaf vegetable Check recipe notes
• 3 Uziza leaves (Finely chopped)
• 1-½ Tbsp Mkpuru ofo powder
• 2 Tbsp Cameroon pepper ( reduce quantity if you don't like heat
• 2 Tbsp Ogiri ( or 2 wraps)
• 200 g Palm nut paste (Or 1-½ cup palm oil)
• ¼ Cup Coarsely ground crayfish

Recall that the bitter leaf vegetable has to be washed to reduce its bitterness. It could take a while, but these days, the washed ones are available for sale in the markets either wet or dried. I hardly see anyone washing their bitter leaf vegetable themselves these days particularly in Diaspora and this makes the cooking process a little easier. CAVEAT you still have to wash it a bit when you get home from the market because besides hygiene the sellers try not to wash away much of the bitterness so the buyer can determine how much bitterness they desire for their soup.

INSTRUCTIONS

 

• Put about 8 cups of water in a pot. Add salt and bring to s slow boil. then add the ground crayfish and ground Cameroon pepper.
• Add the precooked meats,  Turn down the heat to low. ( Don't cook meats for too long remember they are already precooked)
• Add in the palm paste or palm oil and stir.
• Mix Ogiri with a little water and add to the pot. Then take a cooking spoon of hot liquid from the pot to dissolve the mkpuru ofo powder. Pour the dissolved mixture into the soup and stir. Taste for seasoning and adjust accordingly.
• As the soup thickens, add onugbu leaves followed by the uziza leaves.
• Stir in properly, Allow simmer for about a minute.  Turn off heat. Do not cover pot immediately
• Food is ready. It can be serve with Eba(garri) or fufu