Oiless Seafood Okra and Efo Tete

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And I have come with another okra recipe lwkmd! We love Okra o! And as the harmattan and cooler season approaches, this is one recipe you would absolutely enjoy with or without any side; especially after stuffing our faces during the holidays 🙂

Anyway, it all happened one rainy day. We wanted some soup, and we decided on okra, but we were not sure what type, so we took a short trip to the Farmer’s market. As I put the okra in our shopping cart, I sighted some Callaloo A.K.A Efo tete and some fish and I decided to get some to add to the fresh okra. On getting into my kitchen, this recipe was born.

Not only is this recipe versatile in the sense that it can be made with or without oil, the okra comes out very crunchy. And apart from the very many benefits of okra, this is one sumptuous soup we never seemed to get enough of.

I call this soup oiless because it is not completely oil free as I used some seafood and it’s stock and we do know that fish has some oil. When it came to adding oil to the soup, I had no issue with it, but I decided to create something a little different. You know what? With this oil wahala, I never quite understand why some of my fellow Nigerians are so scared of palm oil. Palm oil is one of the most naturally healthy oil one could ever use. Cooking it within it’s healthy temperature i.e. not bleaching and making sure the oil is of good grade is all you need really. And as with all things, portions matter. I am validating palm oil, but it doesn’t mean you should cook with a whole truck load at a time :). At that time you will be o.y.o(on your own)

Growing up, my mother always made different versions of Okra and I guess that is where my love for the vegetable comes from. With this recipe, it was my first time using Efo tete in a long time and you could not even tell that the leaves were in the soup. It was so light and airy and each scoop delivered maximum flavor and nutrition. The way the ingredients married themselves in the pot was so beautiful. Another beautiful thing that happened was me eating it with roasted plantains. Kaii! It was an idea from my friend Remmy and after that day my taste buds never remained the same.

If you do not like seafood, I have another version of oiless Okra which you’ll enjoy

Spicy Seafood OKra Soup
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Cuisine: Nigerian
Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • 1lb shrimp/prawns
  • 1lb fish (cut into chunks)
  • 2 crabs(cleaned)
  • 1 dry fish(soaked and washed)
  • 2½cups chopped okra
  • a bunch of Efo tete or callaloo(wash and chop) you could use spinach, kale or ugu
  • 1 bellpepper
  • 4 habanero peppers or ata-rodo
  • 2large bellpeppers
  • 2 tbsps. crayfish
  • 1 tbsp dry pepper or chili flakes
  • ½ inch ginger(optional)
  • bouillon
  • Salt to taste
Instructions
  1. pound or blend half cup of the okra and set aside
  2. Season the crabs, fish and shrimp with salt and the dry pepper; then set aside.
  3. In a blender, roughly blend the bell peppers along with the hot peppers and set side
  4. Place all the sea food into a soup pot and pour in some water to the level if the seafood. Season with a little salt and let it cook for about 5 minutes or until the seafood is cooked and the Shrimp/prawns have turned pink. Gently remove the seafood from the stock and set aside. Pour out some of the stock just incase it is too much. Pour the pepper mix into the pot with the stock and stir. Bring to a boil and cook for about 3-5 minutes; then add the okra, crayfish and the dry fish; then reduce the heat. Cook for only a few minutes as you do not want the okra to loose it's color and crunch. Stir in the seafood (don't worry about the fish breaking apart) and the tete leaves. Season to taste and set aside. The steam in the soup will cook the vegetables Enjoy with any swallow or even roasted plantains.

 

5 comments

    • Nma Okpara says:

      Thank you Oluwatoyosi. There should be enough viscosity in the soup as some of the okra is pounded. You could add 1/2 a tsp of baking soda if you want more viscosity. I hope this helps 🙂

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