What it is
A northern soup made from yakuwa, the sour green leaf of the roselle plant, cooked with dawadawa, ground pepper and dried fish or meat. The sourness of the leaf is the point of the dish.
Key ingredients
- Yakuwa (roselle) leaves
- Dawadawa (locust bean)
- Ground pepper
- Dried fish or meat
- Onions
- Groundnut oil
- Kuli kuli or ground groundnut (optional)
A list of what goes in, not a recipe. Quantities and method vary by household.
How it is eaten
Served with tuwo shinkafa, tuwon masara or tuwon dawa, pinched and dipped by hand.
Cultural significance
Miyan yakuwa is Hausa and Fulani, eaten across the north west and north east, where roselle is grown for both its leaves and its calyces, the same plant that gives zobo its red drink. The soup belongs to a family of miyan greens that change with what is in season, and it is everyday household food rather than ceremonial.
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