Ofe Okazi

Ofe -Okazi…..Journey to Umuahia
A friend asked the other day how I manage to maintain my weight  with all the dishes I present on this blog. My answer was first I am a Dietitian so I should know how to eat variety and really we should without varying the weight. It is all about knowing foods and how they behave in the body. I control portions of what I eat and try to exercise at least three times a week.But again  over weight is not the only indication of poor nutrition, underweight is also a problem.
Healthy eating ,Heathy living , that balance is the name of the game.
And so it was that I hooked up with a friend from Umuahia over the weekend and  went to Agboju the market in Lagos and got all the ingredients cooked up today’s bomb,  Ofe Okazi which we accompanied with yellow garri… day well spent . *rubbing stomach*

For people from the Umuahia area in Abia state , Ofe Okazi is one of the top five soups you will find in homes .
Ingredients for this soup are available in Nigerian open markets where Igbo women or men sell soup ingredients.
To further add  character to the soup I  suggested to my friend to add a bit  of Uziza leaves … See why I was rubbing my tommy at the end of ” wacking” this soup.:)
The interesting thing for me about Ofe Okazi  is  how the Palm oil color changes from red to a yellowish shade . It is interesting to also see the way the Egusi is treated before adding to the soup.

 

The rest of the process is just like cooking any Nigerian soup. The consistency of this soup is on the watery side  on the first day but thickens by the second day or when the soup rests a bit, because of the achi that is added. I understand that to have that freshly cooked look to the soup when serving,  you can cook the soup without the leaves  and add the leaves each time  you reheat to serve.
Enjoy my presentation !

Recipe for Ofe Okazi

Ingredients
8 pieces Goat meat or Beef
Pieces of Stockfish
Pieces of smoked Fish
Pomo( optional)
1 handful sliced Okazi
1 table spoon  sliced Uziza
2 tablespoons Crayfish
2 cups Egusi
1 piece Osu ( size of small egg)
1 tablespoon Achi
1 small Onion
Yellow Pepper to taste
2 liters Water
Seasoning to taste
Salt to taste

Method
1, Season Meat with Stockfish  with pepper, small onion, seasoning and steam till almost cooked, add the smoked fish. Add Pomo half way through the steaming of meat depending on the toughness of the Pomo .

2, Wash and sun dry the Egusi and grind together with the Osu
3, In a mortar  pound 2 pieces of pepper and one table spoon of onion  till fairly smooth

4, Add the ground Egusi to the pepper/ onion and pound

5, Add one cooking spoon of warm water from the meat pot and continue pounding the Egusi and you will start to see the Egusi binding up with signs of oiliness. Using a spoon stir the pounded Egusi and break up the solid mass into pieces or lumps.
6, Add water to the meat pot and bring to boil
7, Add the crayfish , seasoning, pepper, and palm oil and boil for about 10 minutes
8, Add the Egusi and boil for 10 minutes and stir from time to time, the oil will now change from red to yellow .

9, Sprinkle the achi in the soup and stir quickly to mix. Cook for about 10 minutes
10, Lastly  add the Okazi and Uziza and cook for 3 minutes and the soup is ready.

Cooking Tip: Osu is the white chalk that is blended with the Egusi to give the Egusi the unique texture for the soup, ask the traders in the market .