How to Make Delicious Oho Okoho Soup

Okoho soup is the main traditional food peculiar to the Idoma people of Central Nigeria. It is made from the plant Cissus populnea.

It is a special soup made from the Okoho stick which is very slimy after preparation. It is usually prepared with bush meat (such as grass-cutter, alligator and smoked meat etc.) and best served with pounded yam (aka Onihi). It can also be eaten with semolina, eba (made from garri) and yam flour.

INGREDIENTS

Bushmeat preferably grass cutter 4 large pieces

Smoked fish 1 large size

Okoho stem 1 medium size

Okpehe 1 cake

Ikpeche Seeds 2 cups

Dried pepper 1 tablespoon

Palm oil (optional) 2 cooking spoons

Maggi Cubes 2

Water 1 litre

Salt to taste.

METHOD

Step1 Scrap off all the bark from the okoho stem wash and tear up or shred each stem into strands. Tie up the strands,

Place them in one litre of hot water, leave to soak for about 5 minutes.

Step2 Squeeze the shredded stem until having enough resilient in the water.  Remove the stem and set the extract aside.

Step3 Grind up the Ikpeche seeds into a very fine powder using the dry ingredient part of the blender.

Step4  Pour the ground Ikpeche into a mortar; add 3 tablespoons of water and 2 tablespoons of palm

oil, then pound with a kneading action and mould into balls.

Step5  Pour the okoho extract into a pot; add the washed smoked fish, dried pepper, palm oil, Okpehe

and Ikpeche balls.

Step6 Turn on the burner and boil for 5 minutes, stir and then add the Maggi Cubes.

Step7 Stir again and add salt to taste, simmer for about 5-10 minutes.

• Best served with pounded yam. It can also be eaten with semolina, cassava fufu, eba (made from garri) and yam flour