How to cook Nigerian Ofe Nsala Soup (White
Soup)
Nsala soup or White Soup is a tasty, fast and easy soup
recipe that has its origins in the riverine areas of
Nigeria.
Nsala Soup is perfect for a cold rainy day due to its
spicy taste. Because it is so easy to prepare, you can
count on it to save the day when you run out on soup a
few days before the big soup day ;)
Ingredients
Cat Fish: 4 one-inch thick pieces
Fresh or dry Utazi Leaves (Gongronema latifolium)
Thickener: Raw White Yam / Yam Powder / Potato
Puree
Habanero peppers : to taste
Salt (to taste)
1 handful crayfish
1 stock cube (Maggi / Knorr)
1 Ogiri Okpei (Nigerian traditional seasoning)
Alternative Ingredients for Nsala Soup
You can use Conger Eel (Congrio in Spanish) instead
of Cat fish. Buy the part towards the tail because the
pieces you'll get from there are smaller and do not
have large holes in them.
When using yam powder as thickener, mix the
powder with hot water first to make a thick smooth
paste (as if you are making pounded yam) before
adding it to the soup. Adding the powder directly into
the soup will make the soup mushy and you may
end up with lumps.Note:you can also use
Flour as Thickener.
In the absence of habanero pepper, you can use dry
chilli pepper.
Utazi leaves do not have any good alternative. If you
don't have it, no worries because it only adds a
slightly bitter flavour to the soup.
Before you cook Nsala Soup
1. Cut the catfish into 1 inch thick cylindrical discs and
remove the intestines. Place in bowl and pour very
hot water on the fish. This process of pouring hot
water on the fish toughens the skin of the fish so
that the pieces do not disintegrate while cooking the
soup. Leave for about 2 minutes and wash the fish
with cold water. You should also wash off any slimy
substance on the outer skin of the fish at this time.
2. Boil a few cubes of raw white yam. When soft,
pound with a mortar and pestle till a smooth paste
is formed, then set aside. You can substitute white
yam with yam powder or potato puree for the
thickening.
3. Wash and pound/blend the utazi leaves, the chilli
pepper and the crayfish and set aside. Utazi is bitter
in taste and only used for flavouring so one or two
leaves should be enough especially when using the
fresh leaves.
Cooking Directions
1. Place the catfish in a pot and pour enough water to
cover the fish. Add the seasoning and cook till done.
Feel free to add beef and dry fish to this soup
recipe.
2. When the catfish is almost done, add the crayfish,
pepper and utazi leaves blend. Also add the yam
paste in small lumps and salt to taste.
Note: Catfish is what makes Nsala soup what
it is, giving it the unique taste that it has so it
is essential to this recipe. The only other fish
that I have found to be close to Cat fish as
regards to this recipe is Conger Eel.
3. Cover the pot and allow the contents to cook at high
heat till all the yam paste have dissolved. While
cooking, if you think that the yam paste will make
the soup too thick, you can remove some that are
yet to dissolve.
The Nigerian Nsala Soup is ready to be served with Eba(Garri) , Semolina , Amala, Pounded Yam etc.
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