African Pepper Soup(Chicken)

 By nero fastfood kitchen

African pepper soup is a delightfully ,intensely flavored soup that is served throughout West Africa, especially in Nigeria, Cameroon and other neighboring African countries.

The only ingredient that is inherently present in this soup is – Pepper. The rest is fair game.

There is not just one  kind of pepper soup in Africa. In fact, there are almost as many variations as there are cooks, with each one insisting on his or her take ,on this peppery soup, as the only authentic and unpretentious way to make it.

Yes! Even in my family, we all have our take on this soup.

I don’t know about you but I include EVERY part of chicken in my soup – Feet and head too! And I nibble on them.

Oh yes I do, at least when no one is watching – Lol.

The amount of pepper used in this dish is very much a matter of personal taste. I have suggested using an amount that is pleasantly hot, but not over whelming: Just enough to make you sit and take notice-you can adjust if you wish. Or just throw in a whole pepper , you get the flavor not the heat. I do both , an extra one for the heat seeker in the family.

In Cameroon, Njanjsa  sometimes  plays a big role in this soup. Njansa(the little round condiment in the picture above)  is an exotic spice that  has a nutty and delectable flavor. It  utterly mystifies those who taste them for the first time in soups or stews.

Do  you  really need njansa in this soup?  Not really , however,  it adds flavor and thickens any soup. I only use it when I have some available. It is not a spice I can get from my neighborhood supermarket,so I usually don’t sweat it.

The basic ingredients that you need in other to enjoy pepper soup is hot pepper, onions, garlic, ginger then the list goes on with ethnic spices that range from lemon grass to more universal spices like allspice, cumin, curry, fennel seeds. I kept this recipe simple , so anyone, anywhere can try this soup. Use any protein of choice ( goat meat, chicken, fish,  beef, ovals.)

Enjoy!

Notes

•  using fresh hen(stewing chicken ) to cook pepper soup- yields more flavor.
• Njansa is available in some African markets . You can also purchase on line 

African Pepper Soup(Chicken)

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

45 mins

Total Time

55 mins

 

African pepper soup is a delightfully ,intensely flavored soup that is served throughout West Africa, especially in Nigeria, Cameroon and other neighboring African countries.

Course: Main

Cuisine: African

Servings:  people

Calories: 283 kcal

Author: Immaculate Bites

Ingredients

• 3- 3 1/2 pound 1.3-1.5 kg chicken cut in pieces
• 1 medium onion sliced
• 4-5 garlic clove
• 2 tablespoon chopped ginger
• 1 Tablespoon paprika
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tablespoon Maggi or bouillon granules
• 2 green onion chopped whites and green parts
• 3-5 tablespoon parsley / basil any fresh herb
• 1-3 Scotch bonnet or habanera pepper
• Salt and white pepper to taste
• ¼ cup Njansa optional

Instructions

1. Place all the spices in the blender or food processor. Pulse until everything is puree
2. Add to the pot of chicken, add water about 7-8 cups of water. Bring to a boil and simmer until chicken is tender. Discard bay leaf, add water if necessary.
3. Adjust for seasonings and thickness. Serve warm.

Recipe Notes

1. I like using fresh hen(stewing chicken ) to cook pepper soup- yields more flavor.
2. Njansa is available in some African markets . You can also purchase on line http://tropicalfoodinc.com/index.php
3. The basic ingredients that you need in other to enjoy pepper soup is hot pepper, onions, garlic, ginger then the list goes on with ethnic spices that range from lemon grass to more universal spices like allspice, cumin, curry, fennel seeds. I kept this recipe simple , so anyone, anywhere can try this soup. Use any protein of choice ( goat meat, chicken, fish,  beef, ovals.)

Nutrition Facts

African Pepper Soup(Chicken)

Amount Per Serving

Calories 283Calories from Fat 153

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 17g26%

Saturated Fat 5g25%

Cholesterol 87mg29%

Sodium 285mg12%

Potassium 345mg10%

Total Carbohydrates 7g2%

Dietary Fiber 1g4%

Sugars 2g

Protein 22g44%

Vitamin A16.1%

Vitamin C11.1%

Calcium3.4%

Iron8.2%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

How to make spaghetti Bolognese

by nero fastfood kitchen

Want the secret to making the perfect spaghetti Bolognese? We’ve remastered this family favourite with 10 easy wins to make it really special.

Often one of the first recipes anyone learns to cook, spaghetti Bolognese first charmed the nation in the 1960s and has become one of our most loved comfort food dishes. With every individual adding their own secret touch, the ‘spag Bol’ of our childhoods has evolved into a dish that is often far removed from a northern Italian meat ragu.

We’ve taken the best bits from both the nostalgic and authentic schools of Bolognese. The sauce is cooked low and slow for maximum depth and tender meat and we’ve added a few unorthodox methods and ingredients to boost the flavour.

10 steps to the perfect spaghetti Bolognese:

1. Choose the right meat 

             
2. Brown the mince

3. Add dried porcine

4. Balance sweet with sour

5. Add fish sauce

6. A splash of milk

7. Parmesan rinds

8. Slow-cook it

9. Serve with the right pasta

10. Work the sauce through the pasta

1. Choose the meat

We’ve stuck with mince over the traditional method of braising and shredding a large piece of beef. We’ve chosen beef mince and crumbled sausage meat, which is basically seasoned minced pork and helps to boost the flavor. If you can get Italian or Italian ‘style’ sausages all the better. If not, use the best quality simple pork sausages you can find.

2. Brown the mince

Don’t hurry past this step – be patient as it takes time. Mince, like any meat, gets flavor from being well browned. By cooking it down until ‘toasted’ you also intensify its flavor by reducing and concentrating all the juices it releases.

3. Add dried porcine

Dried mushrooms are filled with umami (savory flavor). By crumbling them into the sauce, they act as a seasoning and by re-hydrating them in the sauce, they have maximum impact.

4. Balance sweet with sour

Tomato-based sauces are brought to life with a sweet and sour seasoning base (also known as a gastritis). Here it’s in the form of sugar and vinegar.

5. Add fish sauce

A touch of anchovy is often added to meat sauces for saltiness and Thai fish sauce is like adding liquid anchovy essence.

6.  Splash of milk

Dairy adds a richness and body to the finished sauce. We tested with lots of different dairy (double cream, mascarpone) and found the authentic addition of milk made the finished sauce silky without it tasting like overly rich lasagne filling.
 

7. Parmesan rinds

If you’ve got them, use them and they’ll give the sauce a background parmesan flavour from the start. They also add to the dairy richness.
 

8. Slow-cook it

Like all meat, mince needs to braise slowly to become tender and stop it being bouncy. We’ve employed the oven rather than a slow simmer on top of the stove purely for ease.

9.  The perfect pasta

To trigger those childhood memories, we’ve stuck with spaghetti, but a flatter pasta like fettuccine or pappardelle cooked and finished in the same way is more authentic and ‘carries’ the sauce better.

10. Work the sauce through the pasta

The secret to restaurant quality pasta is finishing the cooking of the pasta over a low heat in the sauce. The technique is known as ‘spadellare’ and the action is similar to stir-frying in a wok. What happens is the pasta becomes coated in the sauce, the starch from the pasta helps the sauce thicken and the two elements come together to create one dish. This is a massive eureka moment to serving pasta.

 

Tips to make spaghetti Bolognese go further:

• Batch cook

A sauce like this improves after a day or two in the fridge and is perfect for freezing, so you could make more than you need and defrost on a busy day for a quick dinner.

• Use in a pasta bake

This sauce is ideal as a base for lasagne or, once chilled, for piping into cannelloni tubes. 

Goat Pepper Soup

A delicious African spicy goat  soup that will warm you up. Made with exotic spices or just use  flavor ginger, garlic, pepper, onions and herbs.

 Ok, here I go again another pepper soup, but this time it is made with goat. Yes, goat meat– Grilled, stewed, sauté, I love it –am a lady and a carnivore and not afraid to admit.

If you are wondering what goat meat tastes like, I would say it is taste just like lamb shanks or beef brisket. So feel free to replace goat meat with lamb shanks or beef brisket.

 Pepper soup is a very light soup made with a variety of ingredients- ranging from everyday generic spices like garlic, ginger, onions to exotic African spices like  Njansa(top) grain of paradise(right)  Negro pepper(left) and calabash pepper(bottom).

Despite the pepper name, it can be made with or without pepper. Although, most of the soups I have encountered have all been spicy hot. Some of them are so heavily spiced that it is hard for the average person to consume.

 If do not already know this, goat is the most consumed meat in the world and could you believe? As an added bonus, it is great for your diet because it is lean and have less saturated fat, calories and cholesterol-.

Slow and long, is the best way to bring out goat’s full flavor and render it tender. Pull out your slow cooker if you have one and let it do all the work for you.

No slow cooker? No worries, your Dutch oven will do just fine. Growing up, there was no such thing as slow cooker. You wanted slow cooking – reduce the heat and you wanted a cooker- use a large pot and fire away!

Be careful when shopping for goat meat the older the goat the gamier it will taste and imported and frozen goat are not the best choice

The best is organic or fresh from the butcher- it is lean and flavorful. If purchasing from farm  – watch out for the male goat, It has a strong gamey taste.  I usually go for the female ones.

I threw in some plantains, hope you don’t mine… it is not customary but always a pleasant surprise.

Enjoy

Goat pepper soup

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

2 hrs

Total Time

2 hrs 10 mins

A delicious African spicy goat soup that will warm you up. Made with exotic spices or just use flavor ginger, garlic, pepper, onions and herbs.

Course: Main

Cuisine: African

Servings:  -6

Calories: 192 kcal

Author: Immaculate Bites

Ingredients

• 3 pound goat meat cut in pieces
• 1 chopped medium onion
• 4-5- garlic clove
• 2 tablespoon chopped ginger
• 1 Tablespoon paprika
• 1 bay leaf
• 1- tablespoon Maggi or bouillon granules
• 2 green onion chopped whites and green parts
• ¼ cup basil
• ¼ cup parsley
• 0-3 Scotch bonnet or habanera pepper
• Salt and white pepper to taste
• Optional
• 1-2 tablespoon Njansa
• 1 calabash pepper peeled
• 2 Negro pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon grains of paradise
• 3-4 green plantains peeled and cut into 2-3 pieces

Instructions

1. Place all the spices in the blender or food processor. Pulse until everything is puree
2. Add to the pot of goat, add water about 7-8 cups of water. Bring to a boil and simmer until goat is tender. Discard bay leaf, add water if necessary. Add plantains , cook for about 20 more minutes or more
3. Adjust for seasonings and thickness. Serve warm.

Recipe Notes

1. If you don't have access to a slow cooker, you may use a large pot and set the heat to low.
2. Be careful when shopping for goat meat the older the goat the gamier it will taste and imported and frozen goat are not the best choice.
3. The best is organic or fresh from the butcher- it is lean and flavorful. If purchasing from a farm  – watch out for the male goat, It has a strong gamey taste.  I usually go for the female ones.

Nutrition Facts

Goat pepper soup

Amount Per Serving

Calories 192

% Daily Value*

Sodium 311mg13%

Potassium 813mg23%

Total Carbohydrates 48g16%

Dietary Fiber 4g16%

Sugars 21g

Protein 3g6%

Vitamin A56.6%

Vitamin C41.3%

Calcium3.2%

Iron9.2%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.