Seared Beef and Smoked Fish Egusi with Scent Leaf

Method

1. Cut the beef into 3 cm cubes. Put it in a 18 cm pot with the grated ginger, half the onion (chopped), half the stock cube and a little salt, cover and steam over medium heat for 5 min. Add the water, bring to the boil, then simmer over medium-low heat for 45 min until tender. This makes a fragrant stock that becomes the base of the soup.

   Add in this stepStewing beef (chuck or shin) 300 gFresh ginger, grated 10 gOnion ½Stock cube ½Salt to tasteWater 800 ml

   medium heat→medium-low heat

2. Lift the beef out with a slotted spoon and pat it very dry with paper towels (wet meat spits and won't brown). Heat the vegetable oil in a 24 cm frying pan over medium-high heat and sear the beef for 5 min, turning, until browned on all sides. Strain the stock and keep it hot.

   Add in this stepVegetable oil 1 tbsp

   medium-high heat

3. Coarsely blend the bell pepper, scotch bonnet and the rest of the onion with a splash of stock; a little texture gives a better sauce. Mix two thirds of the egusi with stock, a spoonful at a time, into a thick paste like soft cookie dough. Keep the remaining egusi dry for later.

   Add in this stepRed bell pepper 1Scotch bonnet pepper ½Onion ½Ground egusi (melon seeds) 80 g

4. Warm the palm oil in a 22 cm pot over medium-low heat for 2 min, just until melted and fluid, without smoking. Add half the crayfish and stir for a few seconds until fragrant, then add the pepper purée and fry for 9 min, stirring, until thick, deep red and the oil floats to the top. Frying the base well is what gives the soup its depth.

   Add in this stepRed palm oil 3 tbspGround dried crayfish 1 tbsp

   medium-low heat

5. Drop the egusi paste in teaspoon-sized lumps over the surface, cover and cook over low heat for 10 min without stirring, until the curds are pale and set; turn them once gently. Whisk the reserved dry egusi into a ladle of hot stock until smooth and stir it in: it thickens the soup into a silky sauce around the curds.

   Add in this stepGround egusi (melon seeds) 40 g

   low heat

6. Add the seared beef, the rest of the stock, the smoked fish broken into large flakes, the rest of the crayfish, the iru and the rest of the stock cube. Simmer partly covered over medium-low heat for 12 min, scraping the bottom now and then, until the soup coats a spoon and red oil glistens on top.

   Add in this stepSmoked fish (mackerel or catfish), skin and bones removed 100 gGround dried crayfish 1 tbspIru (fermented locust beans) 1 tspStock cube ½

   medium-low heat

7. Stir in the chopped greens and torn scent leaves and cook over low heat for 3 min, just until wilted and bright. Season with salt, take the pot off the heat and let it rest for 5 minutes so the flavours settle. Serve with pounded yam or eba.

   Add in this stepSpinach or ugu leaves 150 gScent leaf (efirin) or basil leaves 6Salt to taste

   low heat