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Nkui
Okra and spice draw soup
Nkui: the Bamileke draw soup of steeped nkui bark, local spices and okra, eaten with fufu corn
Bamileke families in the West Region cook nkui for celebrations, and it is also a traditional food for new mothers in the weeks after a birth. Bark from the nkui shrub is steeped and squeezed until the water turns long and slippery, then simmered with a peppery blend of local spices and finished with okra for an even stronger draw. The soup is thin, silky and warming rather than rich, with a woody, citrusy heat. Lift it with a ball of fufu corn and let the strands trail from your fingers. Look for the bark and the spice mix in Cameroonian grocers; grated okra alone gives a lighter but similar draw. The usual mistake is boiling the soup hard after whisking; it loses its draw. Keep it at a bare simmer. Chef's tip: whip the soup hard with a whisk right after adding the potash; the beating is what builds the stretchy strands.
- Total time
- 60 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 2 ⅛ oz dried nkui barkfrom Cameroonian grocers; or use 300 g extra okra, grated
- 6 ¼ cups warm water
- 3 tbsp nkui spice mixground; or 1 tbsp each ground grains of selim, white pepper and roasted pumpkin seeds
- 1 Scotch bonnet chilliblended or very finely chopped
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp kanwa (potash)or 0.25 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 5 ½ oz okravery thinly sliced
- fufu corn (optional)to serve
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Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Soak the 2 ⅛ oz dried nkui bark in 1,200 ml of the 6 ¼ cups warm water for 30 minutes.
30 minStep 2: Rub and squeeze the bark firmly in the water until the liquid turns thick and slippery and long strands form when you lift your hand. Strain into a pot and discard the bark.
5 minStep 3: Bring to a gentle simmer over a medium heat and stir in the 3 tbsp nkui spice mix, 1 Scotch bonnet chilli and 1 tsp salt. Simmer for 15 minutes, stirring often, until fragrant and amber-coloured.
15 minStep 4: Dissolve the ½ tsp kanwa (potash) in the rest of the water and pour it in, then add the 5 ½ oz okra. Whisk briskly for 3–5 minutes until ropes of slime form when you lift the whisk.
5 minStep 5: Keep the heat low from here: a hard boil, or cooking much longer, makes the draw collapse into a thin liquid. Taste for salt and serve hot with fufu corn.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 110 kcal
- Protein
- 3 g
- Carbs
- 12 g
- Fat
- 6 g
- Fibre
- 5 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does nkui take?
- About 60 minutes in total: 35 minutes to prepare and 25 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
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