Edikang ikong

Ingredients

Greens

• 500 gfluted pumpkin leaves, shredded
• 500 gwaterleaf, chopped

Protein

• 500 gbeef, cubed
• 200 gshaki, cleaned
• 200 gdried fish, soaked and flaked
• 100 gstockfish, soaked
• 100 gperiwinkles, cleaned

Pot

• 200 mlpalm oil
• 3 tbspground crayfish
• 2 tbspground pepper
• 2onions, chopped
• 2stock cubes
• salt

Directions

1. Boil the beef and shaki with one chopped onion, a stock cube and as little water as you can manage, for about 45 minutes until tender.
2. Add the soaked stockfish and dried fish and cook for a further 15 minutes.
3. There should be very little liquid in the pot at this stage. Edikang ikong takes no added water at all: the leaves release everything the soup needs, and a watery version is the commonest fault by a distance.
4. Add the palm oil, ground crayfish, pepper and the remaining stock cube and simmer for 10 minutes.
5. Add the waterleaf first and cook it uncovered for 5 minutes so its water evaporates rather than collecting in the pot.
6. Waterleaf goes in before the pumpkin leaf and always uncovered. It holds a great deal of water and the entire point is to drive that off.
7. Add the shredded pumpkin leaves and the periwinkles, stir once, and cook for a further 5 minutes only.
8. Turn the heat off. The ugu should still be dark green and slightly firm, because cooked longer it goes olive and slimy.
9. Season and serve with pounded yam, eba or fufu.
10. It is a Calabar Efik soup, once served to display a household’s wealth, which is exactly why it carries so many kinds of protein at once.

Technique

• No water. If you remember one thing about this soup, that is it.
• The two leaves are not interchangeable and both are needed: waterleaf for softness and body, ugu for structure and colour.
• Periwinkles are sold in the shell and need scrubbing and a check for grit before they go in.

Substitutions

• Spinach for waterleaf and kale or chard for ugu, which is the usual improvisation abroad.
• Any smoked fish in place of stockfish, which is expensive and hard to find.

Variations

• With goat meat in place of beef.
• With more periwinkles, which is how it is made in Calabar itself.
• Made without shaki for those who would rather avoid offal.

History

A rich vegetable soup, combining shredded waterleaf and fluted pumpkin leaf with a generous amount of meat, fish and palm oil, documented across Nigeria, particularly associated with the Efik and Ibibio peoples of the country’s southeastern region, where the dish is considered a significant traditional specialty reflecting that region’s particular vegetable and palm oil-based culinary identity. Its exceptionally generous use of meat and fish alongside the leafy greens historically made edikang ikong a dish associated with wealth and celebration within Efik and Ibibio communities specifically, reflecting the substantial cost of its many protein-rich ingredients. Edikang ikong remains one of the most prized traditional soups within southeastern Nigerian cuisine.

Frequently asked questions

What is Edikang ikong?

Edikang ikong is a soup & stew from Nigeria: rich Calabar vegetable soup of pumpkin leaves and waterleaf. A rich vegetable soup, combining shredded waterleaf and fluted pumpkin leaf with a generous amount of meat, fish and palm oil, documented across Nigeria, particularly associated with the Efik and Ibibio peoples of the country’s southeastern region, where the dish is considered a significant traditional specialty reflecting that region’s particular vegetable and palm oil-based culinary identity. Its exceptionally generous use of meat and fish alongside the leafy greens historically made edikang ikong a dish associated with wealth and celebration within Efik and Ibibio communities specifically, reflecting the substantial cost of its many protein-rich ingredients. Edikang ikong remains one of the most prized traditional soups within southeastern Nigerian cuisine.

How long does Edikang ikong take to make?

Edikang ikong takes 40 min of preparation and 1 hr 20 min of cooking. The recipe makes 8 servings. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Edikang ikong?

Yes, within limits. Spinach for waterleaf and kale or chard for ugu, which is the usual improvisation abroad. Any smoked fish in place of stockfish, which is expensive and hard to find.

What is the most important thing to get right in Edikang ikong?

Add the waterleaf first and cook it uncovered for 5 minutes so its water evaporates rather than collecting in the pot.