The Perfect Edikang Ikong Recipe 2023
The Efiks of Nigeria’s Akwa Ibom and Cross River states are the originators of the Nigerian Edikang Ikong soup, also known as Vegetable Soup. The Edikang Ikong soup is widely believed to be very nutritious, and this is true.
This Nigerian soup recipe, made with a generous amount of pumpkin leaves and water leaves, is filling in every way.
In this article, I will be providing the list of ingredients as well as a detailed recipe for the preparation of Edikang Ikong soup in the Nigerian way.
Ingredients
- 500g thinly chopped water leaves (I used baby spinach)
- 300g thinly chopped Ugwu leaves
- Scotch bonnet chillies, blend or chop according to heat preference
- 1.5-2 tablespoons palm oil
- 500g mixed meat (I used goat and shaki)
- Ponmo
- Dried fish or Panla (stockfish/okporoko)
- 2-3 tablespoons ground crayfish
- Bigmama Seasoning
- Salt
- Washed Bonga fish
- Washed dried shrimp
- Nigerian vegetable soup with a variety of meats
How To Prepare Edikang Ikong
Note: Do not use onions in your cooking, Edikang Ikong, or the Efik ‘food police’ will come to your door.
This soup is not intended to be watery. Slow down on the liquid/stock addition or you’ll end up with waterleaf soup (obe gbure, pade mi ni’gunpa), which isn’t bad if you ask me, but it’s not what you want if you want the real thing. Also, this soup does not require a lot of palm oil.
You can still enjoy Edikang Ikong without going broke. Use whatever you can afford, but try to get your stock right in terms of seasoning and salt, as you may not need it for the soup.
I squeezed the spinach to remove some liquid because this soup recipe does not require much liquid. This is completely optional, but I’ve discovered that it makes my job a lot easier. I don’t need to cook the vegetable for very long before removing it from the heat.
Step 1: Bring the assorted meat and any other tough protein to a boil with very little water, salt, and seasoning until tender.
Step 2: Toss the meat with the blended scotch bonnet chillies and palm oil. Cook for another 10-15 minutes to ensure that the palm oil is properly cooked and that you are not left with cold-tasting palm oil when eating your Edikang Ikong.
Step 3: Stir in the ground crayfish, Bonga fish, and dried shrimps to combine. Check for salt and seasoning at this point. If you must add salt, you may want to wait a few minutes. Allow it to be the last thing you add to the soup.
Step 4: Stir in the waterleaf that has been squeezed. Continue to cook for another 3 minutes with the pan open.
Step 5: Finally, add the Ugwu to the pan and stir to combine. Check for salt and seasoning, and adjust as needed. Cook for another 3-5 minutes before turning off the heat.
Serve the soup hot with correct fufu, pounded yam, Garri, or any other preferred swallow. Proper nutrition.
Health Benefits Of Edikang Ikong
1. Gained muscle mass
A good Edikang Ikong soup contains a lot of animal meat, which provides protein to the body. Proteins from animal meat are extremely beneficial when it comes to muscle building.
2. Improvement of the digestive system
Another important ingredient in the preparation of Edikang Ikong is pumpkin. Pumpkins have been shown to aid digestion and reduce the likelihood of constipation.
3. They are beneficial to the nervous system of the body.
Edikang Ikong soup plays a very vital and beneficial role in the nervous system