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Ofe okazi
Okazi leaf soup
Ofe okazi: the Igbo palm-oil soup of chewy okazi leaves, thickened with cocoyam, with meat and stockfish
Okazi soup belongs to the Igbo southeast, from Owerri and Aba to Nsukka, and it is weekend food, cooked when the whole family is home. Shredded okazi leaves (the same plant called afang in Calabar) give a pleasant chew and a faintly nutty, bitter edge; the soup is thickened with pounded cocoyam and enriched with palm oil, crayfish, stockfish and beef. Many cooks add waterleaf or ugu for softness. Eat it with garri, fufu or pounded yam. Dried okazi is easy to find in African shops but needs soaking. Chef's tip: soak dried okazi in warm water for 15 minutes before adding it; leaving it dry is the usual mistake and gives a woody, gritty soup.
- Total time
- 80 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the meats
- 1 ⅓ lb beef chuckcut into 4 cm pieces
- 3 ½ oz stockfishsoaked overnight and cut into pieces; or use dried salt cod, soaked
- 1 onionchopped
- 1 tsp saltto taste
- 4 ¼ cups water
For the soup
- 7 oz cocoyampeeled; or taro
- ½ cup red palm oil
- 3 ½ oz smoked dried fishdeboned, rinsed
- 3 tbsp ground crayfish
- 2 scotch bonnet chilliespounded
- 1 tsp ogiri (fermented seed paste) (optional)or 1 tsp miso
- 1 ¾ oz dried okazi leavesor 150 g fresh, finely shredded
- 7 oz waterleaf or spinachchopped
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Season 1 ⅓ lb beef chuck and 3 ½ oz stockfish with 1 onion, 2 stock cubes and 1 tsp salt in a pot, cover and steam for 10 minutes over a medium heat. Add 4 ¼ cups water and simmer, covered, until the beef is tender.
40 minStep 2: Meanwhile, boil 7 oz cocoyam in a small pan of water until very soft, then drain and pound or mash to a smooth, sticky paste.
20 minStep 3: Soak 1 ¾ oz dried okazi leaves in warm water for 15 minutes, then drain and squeeze dry.
15 minStep 4: Add ½ cup red palm oil, 3 ½ oz smoked dried fish, 3 tbsp ground crayfish, 2 scotch bonnet chillies and 1 tsp ogiri (fermented seed paste) to the meat and boil for 5 minutes, until the oil blends in.
5 minStep 5: Drop in the cocoyam paste in small lumps and simmer, stirring now and then, until they dissolve and the soup thickens.
8 minStep 6: Add 1 ¾ oz dried okazi leaves and 7 oz waterleaf or spinach and simmer until the waterleaf wilts and the okazi is tender but still green. Taste for salt and serve with garri, fufu or pounded yam.
5 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 480 kcal
- Protein
- 38 g
- Carbs
- 16 g
- Fat
- 29 g
- Fibre
- 5 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does ofe okazi take?
- About 80 minutes in total: 25 minutes to prepare and 55 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
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