Nigerian Chicken Pepper Soup
Aperçu
Chicken pepper soup is the most widely made of Nigeria's pepper soups, largely because chicken is the most widely available protein. The structure is the same across the family: a thin, clear, aggressively spiced broth with nothing in it for body, where the flavour comes entirely from the spice blend and the stock the protein gives up. Ehuru is the ingredient that matters. Also called ehiri or calabash nutmeg, it is the aromatic seed that defines the pepper soup profile, and Nigerian cooks are emphatic that nothing substitutes for it. Uziza seed and uda, the negro pepper, complete the blend. Scent leaf, called nchanwu in Igbo, goes in at the very end for aroma. It occupies a specific place in Nigerian life beyond simply being eaten. Pepper soup is what people are given when they are unwell, when they have come in cold, or when they cannot face anything heavier, and it is a fixture of bars and restaurants across the country as much as of home kitchens. Hard chicken, meaning an older laying hen rather than a young broiler, is preferred for the deeper stock it produces, and it is eaten on its own or with rice, agidi, yam or unripe plantain.
Note de Patrimoine AFN
Pepper soup belongs to the southern Nigerian tradition of clear spiced broths built on ehuru, the calabash nutmeg of the Monodora myristica tree, with uziza seed and uda. The blend's composition varies regionally, and the soup is documented as being served to people recovering from illness and to women after childbirth.
Ingrédients
Les mentions alimentaires sont fournies par les contributeurs à titre indicatif. Elles ne sont pas vérifiées par AFN et dépendent des produits que vous achetez. En cas d’allergie grave, vérifiez vous-même chaque ingrédient. Cuisine, allergies et votre propre jugement
Préparation
- 1
Place the washed and cut up chicken in a pot.
- 2
Add about 6 cups of water, the chopped onions, salt and the seasoning cubes, and bring to a boil.
- 3
When the pot comes to a boil, add the pepper soup spice.
- 4
Cook until the chicken is tender, then lower the heat.
- 5
Add the chopped scent leaves and the palm oil if using. Simmer for about a minute, then turn off the heat.
- 6
Serve on its own, or with white rice, boiled unripe plantain or boiled yam.
Notes de l’Africook
Notes personnelles de Amarachi Irobi- Use a hard chicken, meaning an older hen rather than a young broiler. It takes longer to cook and yields a considerably better stock, which is where the depth of a pepper soup comes from.
- Scent leaf goes in at the very end. Its aroma is volatile and several minutes of cooking removes most of what it was added for.
- Never use mint in place of scent leaf. They are unrelated plants and mint will make the soup inedible. Parsley is the safe fallback, though it adds little.
- Too much spice blend makes the broth bitter. If that happens, add more water rather than trying to season around it.
- It freezes for one to two months. Thaw completely and reheat gently on the hob rather than in a microwave, which makes it spit.
Questions fréquentes
What is ehuru and can I substitute it?
Ehuru, also called ehiri or calabash nutmeg, is the aromatic seed of Monodora myristica and the defining note of Nigerian pepper soup. There is no substitute. Ordinary nutmeg is a different plant and does not taste the same. It is sold whole or ground by Nigerian grocers and at markets in cities with Nigerian communities.
Should I buy a pepper soup spice mix or make my own?
Opinion divides sharply on this. Ready ground blends are widely used and perfectly good, and this recipe assumes one. Some Nigerian cooks argue strongly that commercial mixes ruin the soup and that toasting and grinding ehuru, uziza seed and uda yourself is the only way. Both positions are held with conviction; try a mix first and grind your own if you want to compare.
Why is my pepper soup bitter?
Too much of the spice blend, which turns bitter past a certain quantity, or cooking it too long at too high a heat. The fix is to add more water or stock and bring the heat right down. Adding more of anything else will not correct it, and neither will more salt.
What is chicken pepper soup eaten with?
Frequently nothing, since it works as a light meal or a starter on its own. When something more substantial is wanted it is served with white rice, agidi or eko, boiled yam or boiled unripe plantain. It is also simply drunk as a broth, which is how it is usually given to someone who is unwell.
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Had to trek down to an African store on City Road in Cardiff just to find the proper pepper soup spice mix. So worth it though. The smell when you add the spice to the boiling broth is amazing. I used the full tablespoon of pepper which was a bit too fiery for me, so I'll drop to half next time.
Fascinating method, I'm used to sautéing chopped onions in oil first for Indian gravies, so adding raw onions straight into six cups of water with the chicken felt unusual! It created a really light, medicinal broth though. Used two scotch bonnets instead of Cameroon pepper. Lovely heat.
Finding actual nchanwu in Minneapolis during winter is impossible abeg. I ended up getting Thai basil from the Hmong market in St Paul and it did the trick. Used halal hard chicken from the Somali shop so it took longer to boil than normal chicken, but e sweet o.
e sweet well well! Adding the nchanwu right at the end for just one minute is the proper way, keeps the fresh aroma alive. Personally I skip the palm oil because I like my chicken pepper soup light and clear, but this recipe is solid.
Nyama was so tender after simmering. Couldn't find nchanwu here in Nairobi so I used standard basil instead, but the warmth from the Cameroon pepper made it so poa for rainy weather.