How to prepare African salad (Abacha)
How to prepare African salad differs but similar as it’s origin is from the eastern region of Nigeria.
Photo credit : @afrifoodnet
Abacha(called by the Igbo’s) is a delicious dish that is native in igbo region but gradually loved by most people including non Igbo’s.
Abacha is usually served as cola to visitors and used as desert in most families in the east.
African salad is incomplete without ugba(ukpaka).It is processed from castor oil seed.
Abacha is first processed from cassava, after harvesting and washing, the cassava is boiled and grated, soaked in water over night between 12-18hours.
It can be dried to be used for a later time or eaten with coconut/groundnut or made into a very delicious salad.
Ingredients for preparing African salad
- Abacha (if dried soak in warm water to soften)
- Oil
- Salt
- Seasoning/maggi
- Ehu (optipnal)
- Garden egg
- Ugba
- Edible powdered potash (soaked in water and mixture filtered out)
- Garden egg, garden egg leaves and meat/fish (all optional)
- Crayfish and pepper
How to make African Salad :
Soak the dried Abacha in a warm water for 2-3 minutes and sieve out the water.
Slice the garden eggs, garden egg leaves, onion and also blend the crayfish and pepper.
Soak the potash in water and seive out the mixture.
The very first step to preparing salad is to first pour the potash mixture in a clean pot.
Pour oil into the mixture and stir till it turns yellowish.
Add ground crayfish, pepper, salt, ugba and Ehu(optional) into the mixture and stir.
Add Seasoning and taste, if it’s as tasty as you would prefer, heat it a little so the African salad would be a little warm.
Pour in the Abacha into the whole mixture/combination and stir together. You have your African salad ready.
Dish out in a plate and then add garden egg, garden egg leaves, onion and fish/meat to garnish.
With these steps you have a very palatable dish to consume.
If in the village, a little palm wine can help step it down.
