How to make White Soup

Hey guys!

We all agree Igala is an awesome language right? And awesome cultures have awesome foods, trust us.

White soup is an igala delicacy that is extremely easy to make. And no..the soup is not white in colour. It's called white soup because oil is not used unlike in other soups. We know some people are convinced that White soup is for the igbo’s (they call it ofe nsala), but if you see igala men devour this soup ehn, you will know it’s definitely in our blood.

Here’s how to make this easy soup for your Sunday pounded yam (winks) or to impress your igala friends.

Ingredients

Yam or cocoyam

Dried fish

Meat/ Fish (most people prefer fresh fish)

Vegetable (ugwu or bitterleaf)

Pepper, onions

Crayfish

Spices (maggi, salt and others)

Procedure

1.       Wash and boil the fish or meat till tender. Remove them from the water and set aside.

2.       Peel and boil the yam/cocoyam as usual. Adding salt to the yam is optional, but if you do, remember that you are still going to add salt to the soup. Some people add the water used to boil the yam/cocoyam to the soup, if you want to add it, simply drain the water into a bowl and set aside.

3.       Wash the dried fish and break into pieces as preferred. Wash the pepper and pound it with the crayfish. Wash and cut the vegetables.

4.       Mash the already boiled yam/cocoyam. I usually use mortar and pestle because its easier and faster. I even use the same mortar I used to pound the pepper. You don’t need to pound it seriously like pounded yam, it is just to break it and make it smooth.

5.       In a pot, add the meat/fish stock. Add the yam/cocoyam water if you kept it. And if the water level is not enough, you can add normal water to it. Be careful in adding the water, ensure you consider the yam you have. The yam is the thickener and if the water is too much, the soup ends up being watery. And we definitely won’t want that.

6.       Add the ingredients to your taste. Add the pounded pepper and crayfish. Add onions. Add the dried fish. Leave to boil for about 5 minutes.

7.       Using your hands, scoop up the mashed yam/cocoyam and break them into pieces inside the water. Leave to boil till the yam has melted into the water. You’ll notice that the soup has become quite thicker.

8.       Add the cut vegetables and the boiled meat/fish. Leave to boil for about 4 minutes.

9.       Enjoy your white soup with pounded yam or any other swallow you want.

Try it and tell us in the comments how it went!