Eba and egusi soup are a typical pair in Nigerian cuisine.
Ẹ̀bà or Ebe or Pinon (in Togo, Benin, and Southern Ghana) is a staple food of Nigeria, Togo, and Benin, also consumed in the West African sub-region and other African countries.
The term originates from the Yoruba, a West African ethnic group, and indicates a starchy vegetable food cooked from grated and dried cassava flour, commonly known as garri throughout West Africa.
Depending on the type of garri flour used, it can vary in color, from bright yellow to off-white. Often, during preparation, palm oil is added to the garri, giving it a bright yellow color.
Do not confuse with ugali, prepared with white corn flour.
Eba is eaten with fingers, rolled into a small ball, and dipped in thick soups such as okra soup, chili paste in Togo, bitterleaf soup, or with okro, ọgbọnọ, or ewédú, meat or fish, stewed vegetables, or other sauces like gbegiri, ofe akwu (banga soup), or egusi soup, a beef soup thickened with melon seeds called “egusi”.
Egusi (also known as agusi, egwusi, ohue, Ikpan, Ikon, agushi, or mbika) is the name of the protein-rich seeds of certain cucurbitaceous plants (pumpkin, melon, squash), which, after being dried and ground, are used as a key ingredient in West African cuisine.
Besides the seeds, water, and oil, egusi soup typically contains green leafy vegetables such as: Efo Tete, scentleaf, okazi/afang (wild spinach), bitterleaf (onugbu), pumpkin leaf (ugu), uziza leaf, celosia, and spinach.
Another Nigerian soup eaten with eba:
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 4 People
- Cooking methods: Boiling, Stove
- Cuisine: African
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 2.2 lbs garri (or cassava flour)
- 3 tbsps palm oil (optional)
- 2.2 lbs beef
- 2 onions
- to taste egusi (or dried melon seeds)
- 1 chili pepper
- 7 oz spinach
- to taste salt
Steps
Boil 1 liter of salted water, gradually pour in the garri while continuously stirring with a wooden spatula. If desired, add palm oil, as I did, for the yellow eba version.
With the help of paper, mold into elongated balls.
Cut the meat into 3/4 inch cubes.
Place the melon seeds in a bowl with 3 tablespoons of water and one chopped onion.
Cook the meat in 7 fl oz of water with the other chopped onion for 30 minutes, set aside and do not discard the broth.
In a large pot, sauté the melon seeds in palm oil, add the broth, chili pepper, and spinach. Adjust the salt and add the meat. Cook for another 20 minutes and add more broth or water if necessary.
FAQ
What is garri?
In West Africa, garri (also known as gari, galli, or gali) is the flour of the cassava root.
In the Hausa language, garri can also refer to the flour of corn, rice, yam, plantain, and millet.
For example, garin dawa is made from maize, garin masara and garin alkama come from corn and wheat, respectively, while garin magani is a powdered medicine.
There are two types of garri, white and yellow; yellow garri is prepared by frying it with the addition of palm oil to give it a yellow color.
Whereas white garri is fried without palm oil and is slightly more acidic with a stronger flavor.
A variant of white garri is popularly known as garri-Ijebu. This is mainly produced by the Yoruba people of Ijebu in Nigeria.
Garri is similar to the Brazilian farofa, used in numerous preparations, particularly in the state of Bahia.
