Beniseed soup or sesame soup is a very common soup Nigerian made with the edible seeds of the sesame plant. This soup can be prepared in two ways either by frying or by adding the ground seed directly to the meat stock once the meat is cooked. Beneseed or sesame seeds are sometimes used whole; the oil is extracted from the seeds for other nutritional purposes. Beniseeds are very common food in the middle belt or far north, they are mostly referred to asRidi by the Northerners, ishwa,ocha and igogo by the Tivs, Idomas and Igalas respectively. While the Igbos referred to these seeds as Isasa and the yorubas call it Ekuku or Eeku.
Beniseed can be fried and eaten with fried peanuts. However, the oil is commonly used in salad dressing and it has been proven to be a good source of various nutrients, including flavonoid, phenolic antioxidants, omega-6 fatty acids, dietary fibre, and vitamins.
However, beniseed soup taste more likeegusi soup when cooked, if you are familiar with egusi soup or peanut soup, you will also find beniseed soup or sesame soup interesting too.
Beniseed or sesame seedoil is very useful inthe world, it can be used for making canned sardine, margparine, and corned beef, Beniseed are available in white, black, and brown variants, the seeds can be consumed in raw, dried, as well as roasted forms and they can be ground into paste to thicken soups just like egusi soup. Beniseed or sesame has a whole lot of benefits, it can be used as a spread on bread, pastry, meat, doughnuts and on cakes.
Beniseed soup can be paired with either pounded yam, eba or with any starchy bolus. A little quantity of vegetable like uziza or bitter leaves can be used to garnish this soup for a better flavor. However, when preparing beniseed soup, make sure you take a little time to wash the seeds properly to get rid of sand and some tiny particles you can use this method of washing acha to achieve that. After you have washed the seeds, spread them on a flat surface to dry before grinding, but if are able to get the clean beniseed in the market you can just blend it without washing the seeds. The cleaning and grinding process can be done in the market at once.
Picture of Beniseed/sesame seeds
Table of Contents
Beniseed Soup Ingredients
- 1 cup of beniseed/sesame seeds
- kilo of beef
- 1 medium sized kpomo (cow skin)
- 1 cup of stock fish
- 1 medium sized mackerel or smoked fish
- 2 tablespoons of crayfish
- 4 scotch bonnets
- 2 cooking spoons of palm oil
- 1 small locust beans (okpei/dawadawa)
- A handful of bitter leaves or Uziza
- 2 seasoning cubes
- Salt to taste
Ingredients for making beniseed soup
Steps on how to prepare beniseed soup
- Season and cook your meat and fish and then drain from the broth and set aside.
- Heat a pot on a stove, add some palm oil, add onions to it and fry for 1 minute.
- Add the ground beniseed to the oil, fry for 3 minutes, and keep stirring as it fries.
- Once it is well fried, add the meat stock to the fried seed on heat and stir.
- Add ground crayfish, pepper, locust beans, cover the lid and cook for 10 minutes.
- Taste the soup before adding some stock cubes and also return the cooked meat to the soup and stir it properly to combine. Cook on a medium heat for 5 minutes. You can always add water to the soup to adjust the consistency if it is too thick.
- Add few uziza leaves or bitter leaves and stir, stir the soup and then cook it for another few minutes.
- Beniseed soup is ready once you are happy with the taste and the consistency.
- Serve beniseed soup with eba, pounded yam or with your preferred swallow.
Easy steps on how prepare beniseed soup with pictures
1. Season and cook your meat and fish and then drain from the broth and set aside.
2. Heat a pot on a stove, add some palm oil, add onions to it and fry for 1 minute or until fragrant.
Frying of onions in oil for beniseed soup
3. Add the ground beniseed to the oil, fry for 3 minutes, and keep stirring as it fries.
4. Once it is well fried, add the meat stock to the fried seed on heat and stir.
Add the ground beniseed to the oil and fry as well
The meat stock will get the soup sweet, so you have to be careful when adding stock cubes to it
5. Add ground crayfish, pepper, locust beans, cover the lid and cook for 10 minutes.
Crayfish, locust beans and peppers are added to the soup at this point, you can as well fry all these in the oil if you prefer that
6. Taste the soup before adding some stock cubes and also return the cooked meat to the soup and stir it properly to combine. Cook on a medium heat for 5 minutes. You can always add water to the soup to adjust the consistency if it too thick.
The cooked meat should be reintroduced back in the soup once every other ingredient has been added
7. Add few uziza leaves or bitter leaves and stir, stir the soup and then cook it for another few minutes.
Bitter leaves are added to the soup, you can use uziza instead
Beniseed sesame soup is ready for consumption
8. Beniseed soup is ready once you are happy with the taste and the consistency.
Beniseed soup served in a plate
9. Serve beniseed soup with eba, pounded yam or with your preferred swallow.
Nigerian Beniseed/ sesame soup