How To Prepare Banga Soup.

Banga Soup

Ingredients for Banga Soup:

1 kg Palm Fruits or 800g tinned Palm Fruit

• Concentrate Beef Dry Fish
• Vegetable: Scent Leaves for Ofe Akwu or dried and crushed bitterleaves
• Banga Soup 2 medium onions
• 2 tablespoons ground crayfish
• Salt
• Chilli Pepper (to taste)
• Ogiri Okpei (Iru)
• 1-2 big stock cubes

Banga Fruit Extract Method

Step 1

Extract the palm fruit concentrate from the palm fruits. (If using the tinned palm fruit concentrate, open the tin and set aside).
Cook the beef and the dry fish with 1 bulb of diced onion and the stock cubes till done.
Wash and cut the scent leaves into tiny pieces. The leaves give its a good and unique aroma and taste. Note: pumpkin leaves or any other vegetable in place of scent leaves. If cooking Delta-style Banga Soup for starch, you should either cook this soup without vegetables or use dried and crushed bitter leaves. 
Cut the remaining bulb of onion. Pound the crayfish, ogiri okpei and pepper in a mortar and set aside. (You can also grind them with a dry mill.)

Step 2

• Set the pot of palm fruit extract on the stove and start cooking at high heat.
• Leave to boil till you notice come red oil at the surface of the Banga Stew. If watery, cook till the soup is thickened.
• add the beef, dry fish and stock, onions, crayfish and pepper and leave to boil very well.
• Add the scent leaves or other vegetable and salt to taste.
• Leave to simmer for about 2 mins.

The Banga Soup is done. Serve with White Rice or use the Delta-style Banga Soup to eat Starch, Garri, Semolina, Amala or Pounded Yam etc...

For Tinned Palm Fruit

• When the beef and fish are well done,
• add the palm fruit concentrate
• add water to get the consistency you like for your stews. Leave to boil
•  Add the onions, crayfish, pepper and ogiri blend and let it boil very well.
• Add the scent leaves or other vegetable and salt to taste.
• Leave to simmer for about 2 mins.
• The Banga Soup is done. 

If you used bitter leaves to prepare it, serve with fufu, Starch, Garri, etc.. If you used scent leaves to prepare it, serve with boiled white rice.