EFO RIRO...

So, its still Eat Healthy January and i don't know if there's a Nigerian soup healthier than Efo Riro... its also easy to make, really.

1Kg Cowleg
500Grms Offals
Stock Fish
1 Onion
11/2 Cup palm Oil
Dried/Smoked Fish (De-Boned)
1 Cup Dried Prawns (Oporo)
4 Cups Chopped & Washed Waterleaf of Spinach
6 Cups Chopped & Washed Green (Efo) Leaves (Anyone know another name for the vegetable? Growing up i just knew it as "Green")
1 Cup Crayfish
1/4 Cup Tomato Puree
1 Tablespoon Iru/Dawadawa/Locust Beans (Rinsed)
3 Ripe Tomatoes
2 Tatashe
2 Seasoning Cubes
Salt and Pepper

Season your meat with salt, pepper and 1 chopped onion, add washed stock fish and cook until tender. Please bear in mind that if shaki (tripe) is one of your offals, you will have to pre-cook it first before it joins the rest of the party for a proper long cook as it tends to be tough. Careful about how much water you cook your meat with or you'll end up with either an efo swimming pool or you won't be able to use all your meat stock thereby missing out on some flavour as waterleaf/spinach and green tend to release a lot of water during the cooking process...

When meat is cooked, pour meat and stock in a different pot or container and set aside.

Blend fresh tomato and tatashe together with as little water as possible and set aside.

Rinse and dry pot then add palm oil and allow to heat up but not get smokey, add ground tomatoes and tatashe and allow to fry for about 5 minutes.

While that is going on, take the head and tail off your dried prawns and add to your crayfish and blend, i like to do this cos i don't want any sharp bits poking me in the mouth or tongue. Rinse the rest of the prawns and set aside.

Add tomato puree and stir in properly, by now you should have a nice tight mix with almost no liquid.

Add iru, crayfish, and dried fish. Season and allow to cook together for another 2 minutes, keep watch so that it doesn't begin to burn.

Now add your meat, pouring your stock in a little at a time till you have a thick soup. Allow to cook for another 5 minutes.

Add waterleaf/spinach. Mix properly and after 2 minutes add your green/efo leaves.

Mix again, taste for seasoning and take off the heat immediately. We want a bright green soup with all the vitamins and minerals in the vegetables still alive. If your vegetables turn brown, you've over cooked it.

Serve with amala, rice, boiled yam or just by itself.