Okro pepper soup is a simple, spicy, delicious African soup made with a unique combination of ingredients. Its origin is from the Southern part of Nigeria where it’s commonly referred to as Igbagba Ofofo or Gbagbafo by the natives.
Okro pepper soup with Catfish
Mucilaginous soups like Okro, Jute, and Ogbono have always been a staple food in Africa and some other regions around the world. In Africa, they are usually paired with swallow foods like starch, pounded yam, fufu, or eba — personally, I call this a match made in heaven.
In my previous okro soup recipe, I did make it clear that okro has a viscous texture, which makes it an acquired taste. However, in the case of okra pepper soup, the sliminess is not as strong as that of the regular African okra soup, and this sliminess can be further reduced by frying the raw cut okra in a bit of oil before adding it to the soup.
Green vegetables like spinach, kale, ugwu leaves (fluted pumpkin leaves), or water leaves pairs so well with the okro. Some people find it hard eating or making indigenous soups without adding some leafy greens while others are okay with or without the green vegetable. As for me, I really don’t care much as long as the soup is delicious.
A little note for those who are not familiar with okra pepper soup
Like I said earlier, okro pepper soup is an African soup with deep flavors and its made with a unique combination of ingredients. I call this unique because it’s quite different from the popular southern gumbo. It’s more of a concoction soup with authentic African flavors. This is truly African cooking!
Notes:
- In this particular okro pepper soup recipe, I used catfish and Shrimps. However, most fish types like Mackerel fish or Tilapia fish will work perfectly well for this. In rare occasions, poultry or meat can also be used.
- Pepper soups are generally spicy soups; they get a good kick from the peppers. Without the heat from the peppers, pepper soups seem to me to be only halfway there. The heat can always be controlled by the amount of pepper you add.
- Bell peppers are not usually added when making okra pepper soup, but I decided to add some diced red bell peppers in order to make the soup a bit more colorful.
Okro pepper soup
Ingredients
- 1 lb shrimp
- 2 lb catfish cut into chunks
- 1 smoked fish or any smoked fish
- 1 lb okra chopped or finely sliced
- 8 ounces Kale spinach, ugwu, sliced
- 1 onion large chopped finely
- 1 scotch bonnet
- 2 tbsp crayfish ground
- 5 cups water
- 2 bouillon cubes
- Cayenne pepper or red chili flakes to taste
- Salt to taste
- 1/2 Cup Periwinkle
Instructions
- Chop half of the okra, and slice the other half.
- Add the water, onion, scotch bonnet, salt, seasoning cubes, and ground pepper in a pot and leave to boil
- Place the clean, fresh fish in the seasoned water and cook on medium heat for about 3 minutes. Add the peppersoup spice and Crayfish and continue to cook for a couple of more minutes until the fish is well-cooked. Remove from the water and set aside
- Add the shrimps, and periwinkle and cook till shrimps are pink on the inside
- Add the okra and cook for about two minutes.
- Stir in the sliced vegetables and return the fish back to the pot of soup. Leave to simmer for about 2 to 3 more minutes
- Taste and adjust seasoning as desired.
- Serve hot alone or with a staple of choice.
Video
Notes
- In this particular okro pepper soup recipe, I used only seafood. However, in rare occasions, poultry or meat can also be used.
- Pepper soups are generally spicy soups; they get a good kick from the peppers. Without the heat from the peppers, pepper soups seem to me to be only halfway there. The heat can always be controlled by the amount of pepper you add.
- Bell peppers are not usually added when making okra pepper soup, but I decided to add some diced red bell peppers in order to make the soup a bit more colorful.
Nutrition
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Hmmmmmm yummy!!!!. i will surely try this soon. good job ma.
Sorry. I think I wrote my last comment on the wrong page before in reference to this soup. Question, what are some good smoked fish options for this soup? And do you recommend using salt fish at all or no?
Not a problem Sophia, I haven’t tried using saltfish for this recipe but I love to use smoked Mackerel whenever I don’t have smoked catfish. You can also use any other smoked fish that is quite firm and will not crumble inside the soup. I hope that helps?