Egusi Soup

Ingredients

• 250 g egusi (melon seeds)
• 600 g beef stew chunks
• 400 g spinach
• 1 large onion
• 80 ml palm oil
• 30 ml vegetable oil
• 2 tbsp ground crayfish
• 1 whole scotch bonnet
• 1 whole stock cube

Steps

1. Season beef chunks with salt, pepper, and stock cube; sear in vegetable oil until deeply browned.
2. Add chopped onion and cook until soft; pour in water to cover and simmer 40 minutes until beef is tender.
3. Meanwhile, blend melon seeds with a splash of water to a coarse paste.
4. Stir palm oil into the pot, then dot the egusi paste over the surface in small mounds.
5. Cover and steam 8 minutes without stirring — the egusi will firm up.
6. Now stir gently to break up the mounds; simmer 10 minutes for the flavors to marry.
7. Add ground crayfish, chopped scotch bonnet, and a splash more stock if thick.
8. Fold in chopped spinach and cook 3 minutes until wilted.
9. Serve with pounded yam or fufu.

Tips

• Egusi is available at African/international grocers; pumpkin seeds are a passable stand-in.
• The steam-before-stir step gives the sauce its signature clumpy texture.