How To Prepare Afang Soup

Afang soup is a tasty, nutritious Nigerian soup, native to the
Efiks/Ibibios (Akwa Ibom & Cross river states).
I tasted this soup for the first time, at a food kiosk in Akwa Ibom, during my NYSC orientation.
 Even though I had to complete my primary assignment in Lagos, I made sure that I had something delicious to remind me of my stay...and that of course was this Afang Soup recipe.
This delicious soup has a slight bitter taste and is usually prepared with a combination of vegetables (Afang leaves and water leaves), assorted seafood/fish, meat and spices .
Afang soup is one of the richest and somewhat medicinal vegetable soups of the Efiks/Ibibios in Nigeria. The Igbos' have a similar soup known as Okazi soup.
The only major difference is that a soup thickener is added to Okazi Soup to increase its viscosity(thickness), but afang soup gets its thickness from the bulk of vegetables used in preparing it.

Afang Soup Ingredients-

- 200 gr beef or assorted meat(cow skin, shaki(tripe), etc)
- 20 gr Smoked fish
- Stock fish (optional)
- 1 handful Shelled Periwinkle (optional because some people don't like periwinkles)
- 2 tablespoonful ground crayfish

- 500g Afang Leaves( same as okazi/ukazi leaves)

(you can use the dry or fresh leaves)
 - 1kg Water leaves( or lamb lettuce or Spinach as an alternative if you live outside Africa)
- 500 ml Palm oil
- 2 Stock cubes( maggi/knorr/onga or any one you have)
- Fresh pepper(scotch bonnet/atarodo) or ground dried pepper(to taste)
- Salt to taste

Cooking directions for Afang soup:

- Slice the water leaves and set aside.
 Slice Afang leaves, pound or blend it and set aside.
Tip: the dry leaves are tougher than the fresh leaves,so try to grind it as fine as you can.
- Cook the assorted meat and stock fish with chopped onions, one stock cube/seasoning cube and salt to taste. Cook until tender.
 Then clean the dried fish in hot water,remove the bones and add the fish to the pot of cooked meat.
- Add the Palm oil, pepper, ground crayfish and remaining stock cube to the pot.
Mix well and then add periwinkles (if you are using any).
Cover the pot and leave to boil for about 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes, add the Afang leaves, leave to simmer for 3 to 5 minutes and then add the water leaves.

If using fresh Afang leaves, let it simmer for 3 minutes.

Tip: it is customary to add water leaves before the afang leaves, but due to the toughness of the afang leaves, I like to add it first before the water leaves, so feel free to do it whichever way you like, the soup will still taste good.

- Add salt to taste , simmer for 2 minutes and your Afang Soup is ready..Enjoy.

Afang  soup is usually served hot with Usi(starch), Eba, Pounded Yam, Fufu, Semolina, Amala, Wheat meal, Tuwo Masara or any Nigerian Bolus meal.