The Most Tastiest Soup In The World – CNN Travel
Banga soup is a delicious and nourishing soup made from palm nut fruit. It is popular in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria, particularly prepared by the people of Cross River/Akwa Ibom and the Urhobo ethnic groups in Delta state. Banga is also known as palm nut soup and it’s not only popular in Nigeria but is also a delicacy in Ghana and Cameroon.
CNN Travel on March 6, 2021, listed Banga soup as number one among the 20 of the world’s best soups. According to the travel website, “Banga is so popular in Nigeria that shops sell ready-mixed packets of spice. Fruits from the oil palm tree lend both fat and flavor to this soup from the Niger Delta, which also has fresh catfish, beef and dried seafood as ingredients”.
In Ghana, palm nut soup is called abenkwan. In Cameroon, it is known as Mbanga while in Nigeria, it is called Banga soup, with variant names such as Efere abaak, ofe akwu, oghwo amiedi, or izuwo ibiedi depending on the tribe, the ingredients used and the mode of preparation. Banga soup can be eaten with other dishes and swallows such as fufu, banku, garri, pounded yam, rice, boiled plantains, etc.
Banga soup is highly nutritional. It is rich in minerals, unsaturated fats, Vitamin K, antioxidants, etc. It also helps in the treatment of Vitamin A deficiency and contains many nutrients that support good brain function and much more!
According to research, palm oil has been scientifically proven to protect the heart and blood vessels from plaques and ischemic injuries. Palm oil consumed as a dietary fat as a part of a healthy balanced diet does not have an incremental risk for cardiovascular diseases.
If you are turned off by foods with high-calorie contents, then reconsider your stance and not miss out on this delicious soup.
Ingredients
- Fresh pepper
- Salt
- 7 medium-sized cups of palm fruits
- Handful fresh prawn
- 2 dry fish
- 1⁄4 kg Meat
- 2 cubes of Maggi or your preferred seasoning
- Ground Atama leaves
- Stockfish
- Onions
Recipe for preparing Banga using fresh palm kernel fruit
- Boil palm fruits for about 35 minutes, pound with a mortar and transfer into a bowl.
- Add warm water and extract the juice, at least 7-8 cups of it will be enough for the soup.
- Use a sieve to strain the extract into the cooking pot. Boil for 15 minutes with the pot half-open.
- It will be thick. Wash the fish with warm water and salt to remove the bones.
- Boil meat and stockfish with onion, salt and Maggi. Boil for 30 mins.
- Precook prawn, boil with a half cup of water and salt.
- Pour the meat and stockfish in the boiling palm fruit extract.
- Add crayfish, pepper, salt, cover and boil for another 12-15 mins.
- Add ground atama, salt and maggi. Cover to simmer for another 5 mins. Then your banga soup is ready.
- Prepare your eba to go with it.