Eru Soup (Spinach or Okazi Leaves)
Eru soup made with okazi leaves is a healthy, satisfying Cameroonian green dish loaded with protein and aromatics that will make your taste buds sing for joy. Pair it with any of your favorite starchy sides, and you have a complete meal!
Nothing delivers flavor and finger-licking goodness with little fuss and even less time than eru soup. When I decided to start a cooking blog, the first recipe that crossed my mind was eru. It was at the top of my list of recipes to make for the blog because I have been cooking for a very long time, and if there is any dish that I cook really well, this is it. So it only felt natural to start with it.
However, I kept putting it off in favor of what seemed more exciting, like baking up a storm in the kitchen. After making it last weekend, my taste buds dancing with joy reminded me of why I cook it often. Wow! I couldn’t believe I hadn’t made it in two months!
What Are Eru or Okazi Leaves?
Eru is our name for Gnetum africanum, an evergreen vine that grows wild in the forests of Central and West Africa. The leaves go under other aliases: okazi, eru, m’fumbua, afang, and ukase, depending on the region and country. Eru leaves are not readily available in stores, but you can find them in African and online stores. This fantastic soup gets its name from those leaves – eru soup.
Several reports mentioned that my beloved eru was put on the threatened list due to overexploitation and unorganized cultivation practices. It would be a sad day for millions of people if it went extinct. Fortunately, researchers are hopeful about being able to cultivate this wild vine.
Can You Use Less Oil?
This ever-pleasing meal is very popular in Cameroon, and the Bayangis (a tribe in the southwest province of Cameroon) love it. Most people use excessive oil while preparing eru because fat carries flavor, right? Nonetheless, I’ve made it several times with very little oil, and it’s very good. So, if you want healthy guilt-free eru soup, cut back on oil.
How to Make Eru Soup
- Soak the dried okazi (eru) leaves in a bowl of hot water for 10-15 minutes to tenderize them while preparing the meat. Rinse and drain. (Photos 1-2)
- Cut the beef into bite-sized chunks, season with salt, Maggi, and onions, and cook until tender. Do the same with cow skin (it’s tough, so it takes longer to soften). Use very little water to cook the meat because the eru leaves don’t need a lot of water. However, you’ll want 2-3 cups of stock when done cooking the beef.
- Add the assorted meat: beef, cow skin, tripe, and dried fish or turkey to a large stock pot with at least 2 cups of stock. Bring it to a boil and simmer it for 5 minutes. (Photos 3-4)
- Drain the thawed spinach and add it to the pot of assorted meat and fish. Add crayfish and two tablespoons of Maggi or bouillon powder. Stir and cook on medium heat for approximately 10 minutes. (Photos 5-7)
- Add the shredded okazi (eru) leaves and red palm oil. Stir thoroughly, making sure all the contents in the pot are well-blended. Simmer for another 10 minutes; add stock or water if needed. The fragrant aroma lets you know it is time to eat. (Photo 8)
- Serve – Adjust seasonings to taste with salt and more Maggi as desired. Enjoy.
Menu Suggestions
Serve this soup with this water or cassava fufu, or any fufu you want. Ugali is another option, a corn-based fufu. Finish off with beignets, or for a healthier dessert, try fried bananas.
More Healthy African Soups to Try
By Imma
Watch How to Make It
This blog post was originally published in February 2013 and has been updated with additional tips, new photos, and a video
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Eru Soup (Spinach or Okazi Leaves)
Ingredients
- 2 pounds (900g) meat (beef, tripe, cow skin, smoked turkey)
- salt to taste (½-1 teaspoon per pound of meat)
- 2 tablespoons (15-16g) Maggi or bouillon powder
- ¼ onion, chopped
- 1½ pounds (750g) dried fish (or smoked turkey)
- 5-6 cups (125-180g) dried chopped ukazi, afang, or eru
- 2-3 cups (475-700ml) water
- 2 pounds (900g) frozen spinach, thawed
- ½ cup (25g) ground crayfish
- 1 cup (240ml) palm oil (please see notes)
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 scotch bonnet pepper (optional)
Instructions
- Cut the beef into bite-sized chunks, season with salt, Maggi, and onions, and cook until tender. Do the same with cow skin (it's tough, so it takes longer to soften). Use very little water to cook the meat because eru doesn't need a lot of water. However, you'll want 2-3 cups of stock when done cooking the beef.
- While the meat is cooking, soak the dried okazi (eru) leaves in a bowl of hot water for 10-15 minutes to tenderize the leaves. Rinse and drain.
- Add the assorted meat: beef, cow skin, tripe, and dried fish or turkey to a large stock pot with at least 2 cups of stock. Bring it to a boil and simmer it for 5 minutes.
- Drain the thawed spinach and add it to the pot of assorted meat and fish. Add crayfish and two tablespoons of Maggi or bouillon powder. Stir and cook on medium heat for approximately 10 minutes.
- Add the shredded okazi (eru) leaves and red palm oil. Stir thoroughly, making sure all the contents in the pot are well-blended. Simmer for another 10 minutes; add stock or water if needed. The fragrant aroma lets you know it is time to eat.
- Adjust seasonings to taste with salt and more Maggi as desired. (I usually season my food with salt and Maggie as the dish progresses.)
Tips & Notes:
- The palm oil we use in Africa and Brazil is NOT the controversial palm oil used in industrially produced foods. It’s natural, healthy, and environmentally friendly. However, you can substitute half of it with corn oil.
- If the amount of oil scares the pigiebies out of you, reduce it to as little as ¼ cup, and it will still taste great.
- Please keep in mind that the nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary significantly based on the products used in the recipe.
Is the calorie measurement per 100g?
No, this soup is a main dish or one-pot meal. I added 240g to the recipe card. Thanks for pointing out that it was missing.