What it is
A soup built on finely shredded okazi leaves, a tough forest vine leaf, thickened with achi or ofor and cooked with palm oil, meat and dried fish. The leaves are sliced very thin because they never fully soften.
Key ingredients
- Okazi (ukazi) leaves
- Achi or ofor thickener
- Palm oil
- Meat
- Dried fish and stockfish
- Ground crayfish
- Ground pepper
- Ogiri
A list of what goes in, not a recipe. Quantities and method vary by household.
How it is eaten
Eaten with pounded yam, fufu or eba, pinched and dipped by hand.
Cultural significance
Okazi soup is Igbo, strongest in Imo, Abia and Ebonyi, and is the same leaf the Efik and Ibibio use for afang, prepared differently: the Igbo version is thickened and holds together, while afang leans on waterleaf. The leaf grows wild in forest areas, which ties the soup to the communities that harvest it.
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