Corn Soup Recipe(Omi Ukpoka)

I know that Nigerian women are always seeking for simple but delicious meals to cook; this is one of such soups. Omi Ukpoka is cooked with dry corn, the type that is used to make Pap.  My twist to this soup, with nutrition on my mind is that I added sprinkles of Uziza which complements the other spices.

You may decide to further reduce cooking time by washing and sun drying the corn, grind or pound to a fairly smooth powder. It will not be very smooth and it is not supposed to be very smooth. I insist on washing my corn as I never know if rodents have danced samba ‘on the corn in  the trader’s shop.

Ingredient:
8 pieces Beef
Handful smoked Fish
10 pieces smoked Prawn
2 tablespoons finely ground Corn
1 cooking spoon  Palm Oil
2 pieces ground African Nutmeg
1tsp ground Uziza
1 piece Uda ( crushed and deseeded)
Pepper to taste
Water
Seasoning to taste
Salt to taste

Method:
1. Wash, season and steam the meat till cooked

2. Add the smoked fish, shrimp, spices and oil, more water and bring to boil for 5 minutes

3. Lower the heat and stir in the corn grit and mix quickly as you add the corn so that lumps do not form. Cook for 5-7minutes for soup to thicken.

4. Add Uziza leaves and cook for 1 minute and soup is ready.

Cooking tip:

The texture of this soup is like Ofe Nsala or very light Egusi soup. Omi Ukpoka is best cooked and eaten at once. Corn tends to thicken further when cool. You may need to lighten soup with a little water if you have to.