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Welcome to My Woven Words! You are on your path to discovering how to prepare, a mouth-licking, palatable recipe… You can and will prepare a sensational miyan kuka (Baobab Leaves soup), just by following simple steps

I honestly do not know how to
describe the taste of this soup. If you can get hold of kuka powder, please try
this soup.

Ingredients
for Miyan Kuka

The quantity of Miyan Kuka soup that
the following quantities of ingredients will give you depends on the
consistency you like for your soups. As you cook the soup, add water to bring
it to the consistency you like. Some people like is quite watery, I like it
moderately thick.

3 tablespoons kuka powder (dry baobab leaves
powder)
1kg cow ribs (cut into pieces)
2 dry cat fish
2 cooking spoons red palm oil
2 handfuls crayfish (2
tablespoons ground crayfish)
1 flat round dawa dawa (ogiri
okpei, iru, locust beans)
Habanero pepper (atarugu,
ose oyibo, atarodo)
1 onion
2 big seasoning cubes
Salt (to your taste)

Notes
on the ingredients

Kuka powder is dry baobab leaves that has been ground
into powder.

Miyan Kuka needs to be seasoned very well so add your
favourite seasoning (beef flavour) and use the juicest parts of beef. I
used cow ribs for this reason. You can also use tozo (beef with marbling).
The quantities and varieties of meat and fish to add to your Nigerian
soups is entirely up to you. The only meat we don’t normally use for
Nigerian soups is chicken. Goat meat, Beef, Lamb etc go well with Nigerian
soups.
In some parts of Northern Nigeria, groundnut (peanut)
oil instead of palm oil is added to Miyan Kuka. As an Igbo gal, 😉 I don’t
think I would enjoy this soup without palm oil. Prior to adding palm oil,
the soup was not delicious, it did not have a nice aroma and the colour
was not appetizing. As soon as I added palm oil, all that changed. You may
consider adding palm oil if trying this soup for the first time. You will
love it!
With most Nigerian recipes, especially Nigerian soups
recipes, we go freestyle when it comes to the quantities of ingredients.
The quantities of all the ingredients listed above can be adjusted to your
taste.
Palm oil is essential to this soup. Once you add palm
oil, you will notice a delicious change in the aroma of this soup. Kuka
powder is dark so you will only notice a slight change in the colour of
the soup when you add palm oil.
You can use cayenne pepper (fresh or dry) or Scotch
bonnet peppers instead of habanero peppers.

Before
you cook Miyan Kuka

Soak the dry cat fish in some cool or lukewarm water.
When soft, clean thoroughly and debone.
Grind the crayfish and ogiri okpei with a spice/coffee
grinder.
Grind or pound the pepper.
Cut the onion into big chunks. I use chunks of onion
when I want the flavour of onion but not pieces of onion in what I am
cooking.
Boil some water and set aside, you may need it.

Cooking
Directions for Miyan Kuka

Cook the cow ribs with the seasoning cubes and onion.
When the meat is done, turn off the heat, remove the
chunks of onion then take out the meat from the beef stock.
Add the kuka powder, spreading over the meat stock as
you add. Then stir very well with a slotted spoon to ensure that you get a
smooth mix without lumps.
Add the pepper, crayfish and dawa dawa blend and palm
oil. Stir very well.
Cover and cook for 5 minutes on medium heat, stirring
it from time to time. Kuka is very much like ogbono hence sticks to the
bottom of the pot if not stirred often.
After 5 minutes, add the cooked beef and some salt if
necessary. Stir very well.
Cover and once it boils again, it is done!