How to Prepare Miyan Kubewa (Okro Soup)

How to Prepare Miyan Kubewa (Okro Soup)

Miyan Kubewa (Okro Soup) is a soup widely consumed in almost all parts of Nigeria, and not only by the Hausas in Northern Nigeria but by other indigenes as well. It is made with fresh okro (originally known as Okra in English). It will interest you to know that there are two (2) different recipes you could make from okro – Miyan Kubewa Danye (the fresh Okro Soup) and Miyan Kubewa Busashshe (the dried Okro Soup).

Okro soup is a draw soup, so if you are a fan of draw soups, here is another one for you. Well, for me, I prefer the one made from fresh okro to the dried ones. This article seeks to teach you how to prepare your delicious Miyan Kubewa (both fresh and dried). Stay with me!

Equipment for Making Miyan Kubewa

Cooking pot

Kitchen knife

Bowl

Wooden spoon

Whisk

How to Make Miyan Kubewa Danye (Fresh Okro Soup)

Ingredients

You will need the following ingredients to make your Miyan Kubewa Danye.

Fresh okro.

1 cup of palm oil/vegetable oil.

3 spoons of locust beans (grinded daddawa).

Fresh pepper and onions.

Seasoning and spices.

Meat or fish.

A small piece of potash (kanwa).

2 cups water.

Procedure for Preparing Miyan Kubewa Danye

STEP 1: Cut your okro into small pieces using a knife and pound it until it has reached the desired smoothness. Alternatively, you could blend or grate it. When done, set it aside.

STEP 2: Over medium heat, put the pot and add water in the quantity needed together with grinded locust beans. Allow to cook for 25 minutes. Cook till the water reduces.

STEP 3: Add in the blended pepper and onions, and your palm oil/vegetable oil into the cooking pot and allow to simmer for 5 minutes

STEP 4: After all the soup ingredients are fried, add in your fish or meat. Stir a little bit and cover the pot.

STEP 5: Add in the pounded or grated okro and small potash (kanwa). Allow it to cook for 15 minutes. Ensure you are close by because it will pour or spill over as it cooks. So you will have to be stirring with a whisk or cooking spoon continuously.

STEP 6: Reduce heat to low, cover the pot, and leave it to simmer for 2 minutes.

STEP 7: Off your cooker and your Miyan Kubewa Danye is done.

How to Make Miyan Kubewa Busashshe (Dried Okro Soup)

Ingredients

You will need the following ingredients to make your Miyan Kubewa Busashshe (Dried Okro Soup).

Dried okro (powdered okro).

Palm oil.

3 spoons of locust beans (grinded or pounded daddawa).

Pepper and onions (blended or pounded).

Spices (maggi, salt, and ginger powder).

A small piece of potash (kanwa).

Chicken or fish.

2 cups of water.

Procedure for Preparing Miyan Kubewa Busashshe

STEP 1: Over low heat, place a pot containing your palm oil and add a few slices of onions. Allow frying for 3 minutes.

STEP 2: Add in the grinded pepper and onions, and allow it to fry for 4 minutes. Stir and put on low heat.

STEP 3: Add clean water to the cooking pot with your chicken or fish, and allow to cook for 35 minutes until the chicken or meat becomes soft and the water reduces to it half its quantity.

STEP 4: Add in the spices (maggi, salt, and ginger powder) and stir the soup with a wooden spoon. Allow boiling for 3 minutes.

STEP 5: Add the okro powder to the cooking pot little by little with a small piece of potash. Use a whisk or a cooking spoon to quickly mix it. This helps prevent lumps.

STEP 6: Cover the pot and leave it to simmer for 5 minutes. Your Miyan Kubewa is done.

Swallow that Best Goes With It

It best eaten with Tuwon Shinkafa and Tuwon Masara.

How to Serve Miyan Kubewa (Fresh Okro and Dried Okro)

It is best served with Tuwon Shinkafa (a meal prepared with rice – short-grained rice). And other kinds of tuwo could go with it as well like Tuwon Masara, Tuwon Semo, Tuwon Dawa, etc.

Occasions to Serve Miyan Kubewa (Fresh Okro and Dried Okro)

There isn’t any special occasion for this sweet delicacy, both the fresh and dried okro soup. It can be consumed as any one of the three (3) basic meals – breakfast (as dumame, popularly known as double fire in Nigeria), lunch, and dinner.

How to Store Okro Soup (Fresh and Dry)

It can be stored in the refrigerator and will last for many days. However, its taste reduces the longer it stays refrigerated. In the absence of a refrigerator, it can last for less than 24 days except when you warm it mornings and evenings, then it will last for a few days.

Health Benefits of Miyan Kubewa (Fresh and Dry)

Okra is low in calories but packed full of nutrients. The vitamin C in okra helps support healthy immune function. Okra is also rich in vitamin K, which helps your body clot blood. It is also good for diabetic patients.

For more information on the nutritional value of Okra (Okro Soup), visit Nourish.

Conclusion

Miyan Kubewa can be enjoyed with any kind of Tuwo that we have. It is tasty and easy to prepare. Now that you know how to prepare okro soup (Miyan Kubewa), tell me in the comments section when you will try this sumptuous northern Nigerian cuisine.

Caution: For all bearded guys, be extra careful while eating this meal if you don’t want your beards to be foody decorated.

If you find this article helpful, please leave a comment in the comments section below. Thank you.

You are always welcome to Northpad Nigeria for more local Northern Nigerian delicacies.

How to Prepare Bitter Leaf Soup

How to Prepare Bitter Leaf Soup

Bitter leaf soup otherwise known as Miyan shuwaka in Hausa language is a delicacy in northern Nigeria. It is prepared with fresh bitter leaves (shuwaka) and some use the dried leaves, that’s after washing it till the bitterness reduces significantly, then spread under the sun to dry. However, it is not consumed by many. Only a few people like it which largely owes to its bitterness. In this article, I will be guiding you on how to make this delicious northern Nigerian cuisine. Let’s get right into it!

Equipment for Making Bitter Leaf Soup

Cooking pot

Bowl

Kitchen Knife

Scoop

Ingredients for Preparing Bitter Leaf Soup

You will need the following ingredients to prepare Bitter Leaf soup:

Fresh or dried bitter leaves

2 cooking spoons of palm oil

Fresh pepper, onions, and tomatoes (all grinded)

Seasoning cubes – maggi cubes,  thyme, curry, etc. (to desired taste)

Salt to taste

2 litres of water (more or less depending on the quantity)

1 cake of locust bean (daddawa)

Boiled or fried meat and/or fish (quantity and size to taste)

Procedure for Making Bitter Leaf Soup

STEP 1: Wash the bitter leaf properly (that’s if you are using fresh bitter leaf) with a small pitch of salt. Squeeze it between your palms till the bitterness has reduced significantly.

STEP 2: Over medium heat, place a pot of oil and pieces of onions in it and allow to fry for 2 minutes.

STEP 3: Add the ground onion, pepper, and tomatoes. Allow to fry for 5 minutes.

STEP 4: Add your clean water (a little bit higher than the quantity you actually need for the soup) to the cooking pot and ground locust beans. Add your meat to it too and allow to boil until the water reduces to the desired quantity.

STEP 5: Add the bitter leaf to the cooking pot with your seasoning cubes, spices, and salt to taste. Allow to cook for 10 minutes.

STEP 6: Stir it well and reduce the heat. Allow to cook for additional 3 minutes.

STEP 7: Turn off the cooker. Ta-Da! Your Miyan Shuwaka is ready!

TIPS:

You can add more water to the soup if you feel it is too thick. In addition, it is advisable to use warm water and not cold water.

Swallows That Best Goes With It

Miyan Shuwaka (Bitter Leaf Soup) is normally taken with Tuwon Semovita or Eba.

How to Serve Bitter Leaf Soup

Aside from Tuwon Semo and Eba, it could also be served with Tuwon Shinkafa, Tuwon Masara, Tuwon Alkama, Tuwon Alabo, and any other swallow of your choice. It tastes best when served hot.

Occasions to Best Serve Bitter Leaf Soup

This delicious northern Nigerian delicacy can be eaten as lunch or dinner. It is served in wedding ceremonies which is mostly common among the Yorubas.

How to Store Bitter Leaf Soup

It is best stored in a refrigerator as it will last for several days. In the absence of a refrigerator nonetheless, it only lasts for a day or two at most, or you will have to be warming it mornings and evenings to last a little bit longer.

Nutritional Value of Bitter Leaf Soup

Miyan Shuwaka (Bitter Leaf Soup) has numerous medicinal values and benefits to human health. The leaf exhibits antibacterial and antifungal properties that make it a good home remedy for several health issues such as diarrhea, high blood pressure, dysentery, and many others.

In addition, Miyan Shuwaka has the ability to improve a crucial female sex hormone that contributes to reproductive development and regulation.

Conclusion

Ensure you wash the leaves properly to reduce the bitterness. This is very important if you do not like bitter tastes else, it will be difficult to consume. More so, as you have seen, it is very easy to prepare without much stress. Now that you know how to prepare Miyan Shuwaka, I hope you will try it at home. Ensure you perfect it first before you choose to make it for occasions.

If you find this article helpful, please leave a comment in the comments section below.

You are always welcome to Northpad Nigeria for more local Northern Nigerian recipes.

How to Prepare Miyan Kuka (Baobab Soup)

How to Prepare Miyan Kuka (Baobab Soup)

Miyan Kuka also known as Baobab Soup, is a northern Nigerian soup, usually consumed by the Hausas. Other indigenes do consume it too but not as much as the Hausas do. It is made from the leaves of Baobab trees (Adansonia digitata). It is plucked fresh and then dried. When dry, it is then pounded until it is in powdered form. More so, a sieve is used to sieve out unnecessary particles. Don’t worry; you need not go through all that stress as we have it available in our marketplaces and at affordable prices.

Furthermore, I can arguably say that this is the most consumed soup in northern Nigeria and it is mostly consumed by the Hausas. This is because according to research, every 7 out of 10 Hausa households in this part of the country consume Miyan Kuka every day and at any time of the day.

This most consumed northern Nigerian cuisine is easy to prepare and tastes delicious when it’s properly made. This article seeks to teach you how to prepare Miyan Kuka. Let’s get into it.

Equipment for Making Miyan Kuka

Cooking pot

kitchen knife

Greater

Wooden spoon

Whisk

Ingredients Needed for the Preparation of Miyan Kuka

7 tablespoons of Kuka powder.

½ cup of palm oil.

Boiled meat and/or fish (quantity and size to taste) and broth.    

Ground or pounded locust beans (daddawa).

Ground onion and pepper. Tomato is optional.

Spices like maggi and salt (to taste).

2 cups of water.

Procedure for Preparing Miyan Kuka

STEP 1: Put a clean pot on low heat and pour in your palm oil.

STEP 2: Slice a little onion and put it into the pot. Then;

STEP 3: Allow to fry for 3 to 5 minutes under low heat until it turns brown.

STEP 4: Add in the grinded pepper, onions, and tomato (optional). Cook for 10 minutes.

STEP 5: Add in the grinded locust beans, the boiled meat and/or fish and its broth, and cups of water. Allow to cook for 15 minutes.

STEP 6: Add in your spices and stir well with a wooden spoon, allow to cook for 5 minutes.

STEP 7: Add the Kuka powder, spreading it little by little as you stir with a whisk (locally called maburgi) to ensure you get the desired mixture and avoid lumps. Then;

STEP 8: Reduce the heat and allow it to simmer for 5 minutes. Ta-da! Your delicious Miyan Kuka is ready to be served.

Swallow That Goes Best With It

Traditionally, Miyan Kuka is mostly dished with Tuwon Masara. In addition, it can also go with Tuwon Shinkafa, Tuwon Alkama, Tuwon Semo, and Tuwon Dawa.

How to Serve Miyan Kuka

Serve Miyan Kuka with a swallow of your choice side by side; that’s how I prefer it. Well, some people prefer it in different dishes, but if you want to feel like an actual Hausa person, eat it from the same plate – the traditional way. Remember to serve hot; the taste is better.

Occasion to Serve

This kind of delicacy isn’t meant for any occasion specifically. It can be consumed as breakfast (dumame, my favourite), or for lunch and dinner. Do not… I repeat, do not serve Miyan Kuka on occasions like weddings. Your wedding will be tagged as the worst ever! It is basically for consumption at home.

How to Store

Its way of storage isn’t different from other local delicacies like Miyan Kubewa, Miyan Karkashi, and the likes. It should be stored in a refrigerator to avoid spoilage. Also, with constant electric power, it can last for a month in the refrigerator. However, in its absence, it only lasts for 3 days. For me, I like to make mine in small quantities to avoid wastage.

Nutritional Value of Miyan Kuka

Miyan Kuka is very rich in Vitamin C together with other essential nutrients like alpha and beta-carotene. This reduces the possibility of cancer development and poor bladder health. It is also of great importance to humans nutritionally as it is rich in medical elements or properties that help in treating common illnesses. More so, it is a great ailment for the treatment of antipyretics, common cold, and diaphoretic.

It becomes more nutritional when you consider the vegetables, spices, fish or meat, etc. in it.

Conclusion

Now that you have learned how to prepare Miyan Kuka, tell me when you will try this at home? Prepare it and make your Hausaman proud.

If you find this article helpful, please leave a comment in the comments section below. Thanks.

You are always welcome to Northpad Nigeria for more local Northern Nigerian delicacies.

How to Prepare Tuwon Dawa

How to Prepare Tuwon Dawa

Tuwon Dawa specifically, is the least consumed of all the types of Tuwos that we have (Tuwon Shinkafa, Tuwon Alkama, Tuwon Masara, Tuwon Semo, etc.). It is usually dark brown, kind like Yoruba’s most decorated swallow – Amala. It is easy to prepare, just like Tuwon Masara and the procedure for its preparation is somewhat the same. This article seeks to teach you how to prepare Tuwon Dawa (yadda ake Tuwon Dawa) without much stress.

Permit me to go straight into it!

How to Prepare Tuwon Dawa

Equipment

Cooking pot
Wooding spatula
Bowl
Warmer
Leather

Ingredients for Making Tuwon Dawa

Ingredients needed to prepare this recipe are:

Guinea corn Flour

3 liters of water.

Procedure for Making Tuwon Dawa

STEP 1: Grind the guinea corn into flour and sieve it well. Ensure fine texture

STEP 2: In a clean bowl of cold water, pour a little guinea flour into it. Stir it well until perfectly mixed and in a watery state. (This is known as the talge).

STEP 3: Over medium heat, get a clean pot containing 3 liters of water on the fire and allow it to boil.

STEP 4: Pour the mixture in Step 2 into the boiling water. Stir properly until thick like pap.

STEP 5: Allow boiling for 5 minutes.

STEP 6: Add the guinea corn flour into the pot little by little as you stir. Continue to stir until desired thickness is achieved.

STEP 7: Reduce the heat of your cooker and allow it to steam for 5 minutes.

STEP 8: Mold your Tuwon Dawa into balls, put them in leather, and put them in a warmer.

Soup that Best Goes with Tuwon Dawa

The common soup that is usually taken with it traditionally is Miyan Kuka. In addition, it could also be taken with Miyan Kubewa (Okra soup) – fresh or dried Okro, Miyan Taushe, Miyan Karkashi, Miyan Wake, etc.

How to Serve Tuwon Dawa

It is best served hot.

Occasions to Serve Tuwon Dawa Best

It is best consumed as lunch and dinner. Sometimes, the surplus can be used as breakfast (as dumame). Dumame is the Hausa name for double-fire.

But it’s not advisable to serve during festive periods like Eids. It is also not advisable to serve on wedding ceremonies, naming ceremonies, birthdays, etc.

How to Store Tuwon Dawa

By warming it in the morning and evening, it could last for 2 days. However, if kept in a refrigerator, it could last for more days, although, its tastes could be affected. So, preferably, make just enough for consumption and probably for not more than 2 days.

However, just like Tuwon Semo, Tuwon Dawa is not interesting when warming it the traditional way (i.e. putting the molds in a pot containing water and allowing it to boil). The best way to warm it is by using a microwave.

Health Benefits of Tuwon Dawa

As humans, we need the energy to take care of our daily life struggles. As such, we need this northern Nigerian delicacy as it contains a high amount of carbohydrates.

However, it is not advisable for diabetic patients as it contains a high amount of starch. So diabetics should keep off, please.

Conclusion

As you have seen, Tuwon Dawa is very easy to prepare. It could even be prepared by an amateur cook – like children learning to cook. In addition to its importance, it tastes nice. Nonetheless, one of its setbacks to many is that it is not good-looking at all, I must say.

Personally, I prefer to take it in the evening. Now tell me, when do you intend to make this for yourself or your family?

If you find this article helpful, please leave a comment in the comments section below. Thank you.

You are always welcome to Northpad Nigeria for more local Northern Nigerian delicacies.

How to Prepare Tuwon Shinkafa

How to Prepare Tuwon Shinkafa

Tuwon Shinkafa is a northern Nigerian recipe that is prepared with the soft rice variety. You could also use the other varieties of rice to prepare it, but they won’t give you the best experience. Personally, this is my favourite of all the classes of tuwos that we have. Do you want to know how to prepare Tuwon Shinkafa? Stay with me.

This type of delicacy is consumed by almost every tribe in the north and so, it is not specifically related to the Hausa people. More so, it is very delicious as it goes with almost every Nigerian soup that you know.

Now that you know what Tuwon Shinkafa is, let’s go straight into how this Northern Nigerian cuisine is been prepared. Kindly allow me to be your guide. Not to worry, it isn’t difficult to prepare.

How to Make Tuwon Shinkafa

Equipment

Cooking Pot

Bowl

Wooden spatula

Packer (mara)

Warmer (food flask)

Ingredients for Preparing Tuwon Shinkafa

You will need the following ingredients to make Tuwon Shinkafa, depending on the quantity you intend to make:

3 cups of short-grain rice or local rice

2 liters of water (more or less)

Procedure for Making of Tuwon Shinkafa

STEP 1: Place the cooking pot over medium heat.

STEP 2: Add the desired quantity of water to the pot and allow it to boil. You could add a little more than the quantity you need just in case the need arises. Keep the excess water separately in a bowl before the next step.

STEP 3: Wash the short grain of rice and pour it into the boiling water. Boil until it becomes very soft and sticky (if the rice isn’t done before the water dries up, you can add a little hot water to it, NOT cold water)

STEP 4: Use a wooding spoon to mash the soft rice thoroughly to form a soft dough. Then;

STEP 5: Wash your hand and mold the Tuwon Shinkafa into balls and put it inside a warmer.

STEP 6: Serve hot and enjoy your Tuwon Shinkafa.

How to Serve Tuwon Shinkafa

It is dished normally with Miyan Taushe, Miyan Alayyahu (Spinach Soup), and Egusi soup. Serving it with Egusi soup is my favorite. In addition, you could also serve it with other northern Nigerian soups such as Miyan Kuka, Miyan Wake, Miyan Kubewa (Okro soup), etc.

Occasions to Serve Best

This delicacy is best consumed on special occasions such as festivals or eids or any get-together. In addition, it could also be consumed any day, any time – breakfast (as leftover “dumame”), lunch, dinner – just anytime is fine. It is best when served hot.

How to Store Tuwon Shinkafa

This delicacy can be stored for many days provided it is in the refrigerator and constantly powered with electricity. However, inadequate cooling could result to its spoilage.

Nutritional Value of Tuwon Shinkafa

Does Tuwon Shinkafa have rich nutritional value? Yes. Because of the rice, it contains carbohydrates needed to give us the energy to cope with the daily struggles of life.

Conclusion

If you follow the above procedures strictly, getting a perfectly and deliciously made Tuwon Shinkafa will be right in front of you for consumption. Now that you know how to prepare Tuwon Shinkafa, it’s high time you tried it.

If you find this article helpful, please leave a comment in the comments section below. Thank you.

You are always welcome to northpad for more local northern Nigerian delicacies.