Egusi soup is widely consumed in West Africa. It’s made with ground egusi melon seed and is usually served with meat or fish and leafy vegetables.
Small, firm green melons with cream-colored dots or streaks that give them the appearance of watermelons are where the oil-rich egusi seeds are found. Due to its white flesh’s potential for bitterness, it may sometimes be referred to as bitter melon (not to be confused with the bitter melon frequently used in Asian cuisine).
First, the body of the melon is removed, and then the seeds are dried in the sun until their shells turn bright yellow. After drying, they are either left unprocessed for storage or shelled (by hand, which is a more coveted and pricey procedure) before being milled into a coarse flour.
Preparing the Soup
I begin by making a stock that has been flavored with beef, red onion, and ground crayfish before making egusi soup. Once that is prepared, I make a thick, creamy paste by blending coarsely ground egusi seeds with chopped red onion, water, and other ingredients. I then spoon the paste into the simmering stock and let it poach until it congeals, stirring occasionally. Next, I whisk everything to create curds by breaking up the paste. The resulting soup tastes more like a stew and can be garnished with a mixture of wilted pumpkin and waterleaf greens. The soup has a thick consistency.
It is worth noting that there are different methods of preparing this dish. A friend of mine would rather stir the ground egusi into the stock and cook. The resulting soup is creamier in texture.
Swallows, such as eba, fufu, and pounded yam, are frequently served with egusi soup. Swallows are soft baked doughs produced from roots, tubers, vegetables, flours, and other ingredients.
It can also be served alongside white rice and fried plantains.
Ingredients
For the Beef and Stock:
● 450g bone-in or boneless beef chuck roast, cut into bits
● one medium red onion, thinly sliced
● two tablespoons ground crayfish
● two teaspoons salt
● 1/2 teaspoon Nigerian red dry pepper
For the Egusi Soup:
● one medium red onion, roughly chopped
● 1/2 fresh Scotch bonnet pepper, stemmed (optional)
● 2 cups ground egusi seeds
● 3/4 cup unrefined red palm oil
● Salt and Nigerian red dry pepper
● one teaspoon ground crayfish (see note)
● Fresh pumpkin leaves, amaranth greens, or kale, rinsed and finely chopped
● Fresh waterleaf or spinach, rinsed and finely chopped
● one tablespoon finely chopped fresh or dried bitter leaf or fresh dandelion greens
Directions
1. For the Stock: Bring 6 1/2 cups water, meat, onion, crayfish, salt, and pepper to a boil in a medium pot. Cook for about 45 minutes, lowering the heat to a simmer until the meat is mostly soft and the liquid has been somewhat reduced (the beef will tenderize further when cooked in the soup). Remove the beef with a slotted spoon, then transfer it to a medium heatproof bowl and set it aside. You should have roughly 5 1/2 cups of stock reserved.
2. For the Egusi soup: Onion, pepper (if using), and 1/4 cup water should be blended until smooth in a food processor. Scoop into a medium mixing bowl and stir in the ground egusi seeds. Add one tablespoon of water at a time until a thick, creamy paste forms (the paste should be viscous and hold its shape). Set aside.
3. Heat oil in a 4-quart saucepan over low heat for 1 minute. Bring to a gentle simmer with all of the reserved stock and crayfish. One heaping teaspoon of paste at a time, add to stock. For about 25 minutes, with the lid on, cook the paste, stirring regularly and carefully scraping the bottom of the pan (patches of orange-red palm oil may bubble on top or around the sides).
4. Stir in the reserved beef to break up the cooked paste into curds (stirring more or less affects the size of the curds). Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook for another 10 minutes or until the beef is heated through and tender and some of the orange-red palm oil pools on top.
5. Place a mound of pumpkin and waterleaf leaves on top of the soup without stirring; then, cover the pot and let it steam for 2 minutes or until the greens are wilted. Cook for about 8 minutes, then stir in the bitter leaf.
6. Serve the soup hot or at room temperature with cooked white rice, eba, or dodo.