Egusi Soup

Ingredients

• 2 cups ground melon seeds, egusi
• 700 g beef, goat meat or assorted meat
• 250 g stockfish or dried fish, soaked and cleaned
• 150 g ground crayfish
• 2 cups chopped spinach, ugu or bitterleaf
• 1 cup palm oil
• 2 medium onions
• 4 red peppers
• 2 Scotch bonnet peppers
• 2 seasoning cubes
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground pepper
• 3 cups meat stock
• 100 g kpomo, optional

How to make it

1. Cook the meat and kpomo with one onion, salt and seasoning cube until tender. Reserve the stock.
2. Soak stockfish until soft, remove bones and rinse. Clean the dried fish carefully.
3. Blend peppers and onion. Fry or simmer the mixture until its raw aroma reduces.
4. Heat palm oil in a large pot. Add half the chopped onion and fry gently.
5. Add the egusi gradually, stirring constantly. Fry for 3 to 5 minutes, or add a little stock and form soft egusi lumps according to your preferred texture.
6. Add pepper mixture, crayfish, stockfish, dried fish, meat and enough stock. Simmer for 15 minutes.
7. Season with salt, pepper and seasoning cube. Add chopped vegetables and cook for 3 to 5 minutes so they remain green.
8. Rest for 5 minutes and serve with pounded yam, eba, fufu, semolina or rice.