Nigeria | Soup

Ofe Nsala

Igbo white soup made without palm oil, thickened with yam and cooked with catfish, crayfish, uziza, and utazi.

Country
Nigeria
Region
West Africa
Time
80 min
Serves
6
Level
medium
Explore Nigeria recipes Browse AfroKitchen
Recipe overview

What to know before you cook

Use this overview to check the occasion, serving ideas, regional context, and cooking commitment before you begin.

When to cook it

Best for swallow meals, special family cooking, and peppery fish soup cravings.. Plan on a medium cook and about 80 minutes total.

What to serve alongside it

Pounded yam, semolina, fufu, or boiled yam.

Regional lane

South-East and Igbo table. Cassava salads, oha, white soup, bambara nut cakes, palm oil, smoked fish, and cocoyam-thickened soups.

Chef watch-outs
  • Stopping the base before the pepper, onion, or spice edge has mellowed.
  • Thinning the pot before the body of the soup or stew has developed.
  • Rushing the base before the raw edge has cooked out.
How you know it is ready
  • The sauce should coat the spoon and taste rounded, not watery or raw.
  • The aroma should smell rounded rather than raw or sharp.
  • Oil, sauce, broth, or steam should look settled and deliberate.
Pantry lane

palm oil, crayfish, iru or ogiri, scotch bonnet, melon seed

Chef board

Build the table around Ofe Nsala

Pounded yam, semolina, fufu, or boiled yam.

Best route from here

South-East and Igbo table

Collections to keep cooking
Nigerian Regional Table
Servings 6

Scale the dish before you shop, then use the checklist while you cook.

How to cook it

Step-by-step method

Keep the rhythm calm, watch the texture, and adjust seasoning at the end.

Back to Nigeria
4 steps 25 min prep 55 min cook 80 min total medium
1
Make yam thickener
Boil yam until soft, then pound or blend into a smooth paste.
yam 20:00
2
Season the broth
Bring water or stock to a simmer with crayfish, uziza, pepper, and salt.
broth 10:00
3
Cook the fish
Add catfish pieces and simmer gently until almost cooked.
fish simmer 12:00
4
Thicken and finish
Add yam paste in small lumps, simmer until dissolved and thickened, then finish with utazi.
thicken 15:00

Catfish is common, but chicken or goat can be used. Some cooks add more uziza for heat and aroma.

Keep exploring

Cook around Ofe Nsala

Follow country, category, collection, time, and pairing paths without turning the recipe page into a link farm.

Jollof Rice recipe from Nigeria Nigeria Main dish Jollof Rice Nigerian party jollof rice cooked in a fried tomato-pepper base with stock, thyme, curry powder, bay leaves, and a smoky bo... Time95 min ServingsServes 6 DifficultyMedium DietGluten Free RegionWest Africa Open recipe Nigeria Soup Egusi Soup Nigerian egusi soup with ground melon seeds, palm oil, pepper base, assorted meats, stockfish, crayfish, and leafy greens. Time85 min ServingsServes 6 DifficultyMedium DietGluten Free RegionWest Africa Open recipe Nigeria Soup Fisherman Soup South-South Nigerian seafood soup with fresh fish, prawns, periwinkles, crayfish, pepper, yam thickener, and aromatic leaves. Time75 min ServingsServes 6 DifficultyMedium DietGluten Free RegionWest Africa Open recipe Nigeria Breakfast Akara Nigerian black-eyed pea fritters blended with onion and pepper, whipped light, then fried until crisp outside and fluffy in... Time70 min ServingsServes 6 DifficultyMedium DietVegan RegionWest Africa Open recipe
Browse AfroKitchen Explore Nigeria recipes