By Soyoquor Quarcoo Tchire
Okra or okro soup, also known as draw soup is a combination of meat and vegetables fused together in the right conditions to make a very sumptuous meal. Okra soup is a fascinating dish because of its many permutations across West Africa. This is one kind of soup that impresses many children due to the fact it easily slides down the throat with any accompaniment. Okra is rich in vitamin C, folic acid, potassium and vitamin B and also low in calories with high fiber content. This is a good food for weight control and a sustainable diet. In a jiffy we will share with you a blow by blow approach with the required ingredients to prepare very tasty okra soup on CHOPOLOGY today.
Let’s get our shopping list ready for the market. To prepare okra soup we need okra, garden eggs, onion, scotch bonnet pepper, tomatoes, tuna, mackerel, wele, crabs, palm oil, garlic, meat (preferably beef) ginger, salted fish or momoni (THIS IS OPTIONAL) and salt to taste. Wash and cut the meat into pieces put into a saucepan with chopped onions and salt. Place in a saucepan and steam on fire. Cut wele into chewy bits and properly wash. Remove the flesh of the mackerel and tuna and break into two and remove the bones, break into desired sizes and set aside. Also dress the crabs and cook for about five minutes on fire. Wash okra and garden eggs. Chop half of the portion of okra you will use then grate the other half. The smaller you cut the okra, the better the draw will be. Cut the stalks off the garden eggs and cut them in half or in preferred slices. Pour in a pot, add water and put on fire. Let it boil while stirring regularly until the garden eggs turn translucent. Wash onions, tomatoes, pepper and garlic. Blend the pepper, garlic and some onions. Separately blend the tomatoes and slice some onion and put aside. In a separate pot, pour palm oil and put on fire. When the oil is hot, add the sliced onions, ground chilli pepper and garlic. You can add some ginger blend and momoni, which is absolutely optional. As the mixture softens, add the tomato blend and leave to cook for some minutes before adding your protein-steamed meat, mackerel, tuna, wele and crabs. Once the stew is sufficiently cooked, add the cooked okra and garden eggs. Properly mix it by turning it from the bottom of the pot to the top. The okra is added last in order not to over-cook. Wash and drop a few scotch bonnet pepper in the soup for colour and flavor. Allow the mixture to cook for about five to ten minutes. When ready, serve with banku or any accompaniment of your choice. Food is ready to slide down your throat! Bon appetite.
