Are you a tourist/a foreigner looking to try out some Nigerian Soups or a Nigerian looking to try out new soups? You’re welcome as we present to you; top 10 Nigerian soups across the areas of the country you might want to try out.
Nigeria is blessed with top cuisines, rich with either assorted meat or seafood. Whatever way you want it served; you are guaranteed a satisfying taste that gets you wanting more.
Number one our list is
1. Egusi Soup
Egusi Soup is rich and savoury. It is one of the top elite Nigerian soups. Egusi soup is made with ground melon seeds and eaten with all kinds of swallow dishes. It makes a wonderful and satisfying low carb diet. It is usually a thickened soup and can be used in eating rice as well as yam and potatoes. Egusi soup is common amongst all Nigerian tribes except for the Fulani. Egusi can also be cooked using either the cooking method or the frying method.
2. Afang soup
Afang soup, eaten by Efik and Ibibio people of Nigeria. It is a delicious soup made with Afang leaves and waterleaf. Afang can be confused with Vegetable soup, Efo riro and Edikakong soup as they all look alike since they are made out of leafy vegetables. This soup is best served with Eba but can be eaten with all types of swallows. Afang soup tastes very different when prepared with seafood.
3. Vegetable soup
Vegetable soup is an Igbo delicacy, almost similar to Efik’s Afang soup. It is made with a combination of, Spinach leaves, Waterleaf, bitter leaf, saint leaves and Pumpkin leaves. Vegetable soup is one meal that can both be served as either a soup or stew. Oh, and vegetable soup is the best kind of soup to make when you don’t have money for assorted meat. It is also very cheap to make and can be made in 5minutes. It can be taken with all kinds of swallows, as well as Rice and yam.
4. Groundnut soup
Groundnut soup is a native soup of the people of Edo. It is also most common with the South-South people of Nigeria. It is made with blended groundnut or peanut. Some essential ingredients used in making the soup includes Uziza seed and bitter leaf. It is best served with Fufu. It is also served in other countries such as Ghana and Sierre-Leone.
5. Okro soup
Okro is a very delicious popular meal served in different regions of the country in different ways. The Yorubas make theirs very plain and are served with stew. The Igbos and the south-south people of Nigeria make theirs as shown in the picture above. Okro is a rich source of dietary fibre, minerals, and vitamins and a low-calorie vegetable. Okra has a slippery feel when rubbed with the fingers and it draws. Often referred to as obe ila by the Yoruba’s. The plant name Okro is derived from the Igbo language. Okro soup is one of the best soups that can be made with seafood.
6. Ogbono soup
Ogbono soup is also one of the draw soups just like Okro soup. This type of soup soup is a Nigerian dish made with ground dry ogbono seeds with considerable local variation. The ground ogbono seeds are used as a thickener and give the soup a black colouration. It is a native soup of the Igbos but has gained popularity in other parts of the country. It can be served with all kinds of swallows. For extra draw effect, some folks add Okro to the preparation; this makes it better in taste and adds colour to the soup.
7. Ewedu soup
Ewedu soup is made using Jute leaves, a highly nutritious leafy green plant. It is a native soup of the Yoruba people. Usually served with Amala. Some natives add Gbegiri soup (a native soup of the Yorubas and Hausas; made from grounded dried beans) to the mix for an added savoury taste.
8. Efo-riro
Efo Riro is a rich vegetable soup that is native to the Yorubas of Western Nigeria. It is made with spinach leaves and locust beans, tatashe pepper and palm oil. Efo riro is made plain and served with pepperish added stew as it’s the style of the Yoruba’s. It can be eaten with any kind of swallows but is best served with pounded yam.
9. Banga soup
A soup made from fruity palm kernels. Banga soup is a rich tasty soup served with Starch meal, originates from the Niger-delta region of Nigeria. It is one of the most enjoyed dishes by the Urhobos and Itsekiri’s. Other tribes also have their own versions of it. This cuisine is quite different from “Ofe Akwu” which is a variant found in Igbo culture. It is made from extracting oil from the palm kernel. Banga soup is mostly prepared using fresh catfish and sometimes eaten with a cocoyam pudding.
10. Edikaikong
Often regarded as a rich man’s soup is edikaikong soup, a native soup of the Niger-Delta region. It is also referred to as the real vegetable soup by the Ibibio’s and Efik people. Like, the Efo-riro, Afang soup and Vegetable soup, they share the same look, but they are all made with different vegetables. Edikaikong is made with only pumpkin leaves. The soup is regarded as a rich man’s food because of the quantity of periwinkle used in making the meal, which is quite expensive and scarce in most parts of the country. The periwinkle is the most essential part of the soup, and it can be served with all kinds of swallows.
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