The Yoruba people of south western Nigeria are known for their varieties of delicious and tantalizing soups that sends the bowel yearning for a lick. The delicacies of the Yoruba people compris­es predominantly solid foods (what Nigerians call SWALLOW) like: Amala, Eba, Fufu, Iyan, etc. that are needed to be eaten with soup for sweet and easy passage down the throat. One of such soups is ‘Gbegiri‘ which is prepared with beans. Are you surprised that a soup is prepared with beans?! Do not be surprised! Gbegiri is one of the best soups in Yoruba land that helps a woman construct a pathway to the heart of a man.

Here are the ingredients needed to prepare Gbegiri soup:

* 150g of beans (brown or black eyed)
* A tablespoon of grounded crayfish
* 1 cooking spoon of palm oil
* 1 smoked Titus
* Pepper, stock cubes and salt (adequate)

Once all these ingredients are available and ready, you are good to go. But before you start cooking the Gbegiri soup, you must ensure that:

* The coat of the beans has been removed and the beans has been soaked for about 2 hours in order to make the beans get soft for quick preparation;

* There is beef, chicken or any kind of meat stew and ewedu cooked aside because they will be used along with the ‘Gbegiri’.

Now you can proceed to cooking.

Steps in cooking Gbegiri soup:

Step 1- Pour the peeled and soaked beans into a pot of suitable size. Add water and cook on medium heat.

Step 2- After cooking the beans for about 1 hour, press with a spoon or hand (make sure it is clean) to check if they have become soft. If they have become soft, make sure that there is not too much water in the beans so that the soup will not get too watery.

Step 3- Mash the beans with a chopping broom (Ijabe), masher or if a blender is available, blend it. Pour the blended beans back into the pot and continue cooking.

Step 4- After cooking for about 4 minutes, add the smoked Titus, palm oil, crayfish, stock cube and salt to relish the taste.

Step 5- Stir, cover the pot and cook on for about 6 minutes. You will notice that the palm oil has started turning yellow. Stir again and again to prevent the soup from burning. Then remove the pot from fire and you have your Gbegiri soup done and waiting to slide down your bowel!

Now serve the Gbegiri soup with beef or/and chicken stew and your already prepared ewedu. The Gbègìrì soup can be eaten with Amala, Eba, Fufu and other solid foods (natively referred to as òkèlè). Do not forget cold water or soft drinks!

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