Ofe nsala is another delicious white soup cooked with goat meat, this is one of the healthiest light soups so far that I have come across, it is prepared without palm oil being added, nor peanut oil just like egusi pepper soup. If you want to really enjoy the taste of this soup, its best you cook it with goat meat.
Ofe Nsala soup is the Igbo version of white soup, it is very easy and quick to prepare with few ingredients. I made a similar soup like the above which is this delicious achi soup and sometimes back I made this Calabar white with chicken here you can check it out and compare the two to see which one you love most, they are all very unique and delicious in their own ways.
Yam is a very important ingredient in Ofe Nsala soup,as it is used to thicken the soup to give it a nice texture, just the way you use cocoyam to thicken Ofe Oweeri. You can either boil raw yam and then mash into a smooth paste for Ofe Nsala recipe or dissolve yam flour (pounded flour) in water to thicken the soup. The soup doesnt have to be very thick, just thick enough to hold your swallow when you deep into the soup.
Apart from goat meat, beef, chicken or dried fish can be added to make ofe Nsala soup, it all depends on your taste. I so much love the flavour of goat meat in a simple white soup like the above, However, I decided to use goat meat and some stockfish and toward the end of the cooking, I threw in few pieces of beef which I left over as I didnt want it to waste.
However, ofe is traditionally garnished with Utazi leaves, but if you dont have utazi, you can use Uziza leaves or spinach to add some greens to the soup; you just need a little of the leaves because it is not a vegetables soup. You can pair ofe Nsala with pounded yam or fufu. Check the video above to see how to make ofe nsala the simplest way.
Table of Contents
Ingredients For Nsala Soup
- 1 kilo of goat meat
- 8 pieces of tiny yam cubes
- 1 cup of stockfish/dried fish
- 3 seasoning cubes
- 8 pieces of boiled beef, optional
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 3 scotch bonnets or cayenne pepper
- 2 tablespoons of ground crayfish
- 1 teaspoon of ground uziza seed, optional
- 3 medium size utazi leaves, shredded
- Salt to taste
Ofe nsala ingredients
Steps On How to Cook Ofe Nsala Soup
- Peel yam nicely, dice into smaller sizes and rinse well, Rinse the goat meat and stockfish into a pot.
- Add the blended pepper, onions, 2 stock cubes, salt, goat meat spice to the meat and place on heat to cook.
- Add enough water to the meat and also add the peeled yams and cook for 20 minutes.
- Pierce the yam with a fork to check if it is soft, once it is soft, remove from the content.
- Let the goat meat cook for a while until it turns out very soft. Place the yam in the mortar and mash gently or use a blender to blend it and set aside.
- Add some ground crayfish to the meat, more stock cube, and uziza seed and stir properly, you can add more water if the initial is dried up.
- Cut the mashed yam into bite sizes and drop into the pot containing the meat to dissolve.
- After the yam has dissolved in the content, taste for seasoning and adjust if need be.
- Add the shredded utazi leaves sparingly and stir well to combine, leave the soup to simmer for few minutes on medium heat. Take the Nsala soup off heat and serve with soft-pounded yam.
Steps on How to Cook Ofe Nsala Soup with Pictures
1. Peel yam nicely, dice into smaller sizes and rinse well, Rinse the goat meat and stockfish into a pot.
2. Add the blended pepper, onions, 2 stock cubes, salt, goat meat spice to the meat and place on heat to cook.
3. Add enough water to the meat and also add the peeled yams and cook for 20 minutes.
Boiling of yam and goat meat for ofe nsala soup
4. Pierce the yam with a fork to check if it is soft, once it is soft, remove from the content.
5. Let the goat meat cook for a while until it turns out very soft. Place the yam in the mortar and mash gently or use a blender to blend it and set aside.
Mashed yam for thickening ofe nsala
6. Add some ground crayfish to the meat, more stock cube, and uziza seed and stir properly, you can add more water if the initial is dried up.
after taking out the yam, leave the meat to cook for another 20 minutes to become tender
7. Cut the mashed yam into bite sizes and drop into the pot containing the meat to dissolve.
Do not add much of the mashed yam to the soup, you only a little to thicken the soup
8. After the yam has dissolved in the content, stir and taste for seasoning and adjust if need be.
This is what it looks like once the mashed yam has dissolved into the content
After you have added the needed ingredient and you love the taste of the soup, add the shredded utazi leaves and stir, leave to simmer for few minutes
9. Add the shredded utazi leaves sparingly and stir well to combine, leave the soup to simmer for few minutes on medium heat. Take the Nsala soup off heat and serve with soft-pounded yam.
Once you have achieved your preferred consistency, Ofe Nsala is ready
Ofe nsala soup is best served with pounded yam
Ofe Nsala Soup Recipe, Yummy and Rich