Banga Soup is a Nigerian soup that is native to the southern parts of Nigeria. It is quite similar to the Igbo’s Ofe Akwu, but the additional spices used for preparing Banga Soup, make it different in taste and aroma.

Banga soup is known by various names including izuwo amedi in Urhobo language and izuwo edi in  Isoko language. Here is the recipe…, enjoy!

Banga soup is made with palm nuts, and the preparation method varies from tribe to tribe. Banga Soup goes well with any swallow, but we are going to enjoy this soup with Fufu. Here’s how Banga soup is prepared.

Banga Soup Ingredients

Here are the ingredients for Banga Soup:

• A can of palm nut soup base sauce

• Scotch bonnet chilli pepper

• Crayfish

• A whole chicken (not the broiler type. Get the proper local fowl if you can get it or the boiling chicken)

• 2 medium very ripe tomatoes (using tomatoes is a variation used by Ghanaians. Not used in Nigeria but I love the depth of flavours they add to the soup. Use ripe and sweet ones to avoid the tangy-ness of some tomatoes which isn’t a desirable characteristic in this soup)

• Smoked dried catfish

• Dried sole fish (eja abo)

• 1 small onion (dice)

• 1 clove garlic (chop finely)

• 10g of ginger

• 2 shelled ehuru seeds (African nutmeg) ground into powder

• Some shaving of aridan (shave using a cheese grater)

• Fresh basil or scent leaves (wash well and shred)

• Salt to taste

How to Make Banga Soup

1. Chop chicken at the joints into its parts, such as wings, thighs, legs, breast, back etc. Trim off all unwanted parts and rinse in some clean water with a dash of lemon juice. 

2. Put clean chicken pieces into a stock pot and add the diced onion, diced tomatoes, salt, garlic. Add some water and boil until chicken is tender and soft. Not too soft as cooking will continue in stage two. 

3. Meanwhile, wash and soak the dried fish in hot salted water. Set aside. 

3. Stage 2: Empty the content of 1 can of palm nut base sauce into a pot and place on a low heat stove. 

4. Blend the chilli peppers, crayfish and ginger, add some water to aid blending. Blend until smooth. Add blend to the palm nut base sauce. Stir and allow to cook. Then add the ground ehuru seeds and the shaved aridan. Stir all together and continue to cook for another 6 minutes or so. You will begin to notice some oil floating on the soup. 

5. This is the time to add the other ingredients. So add the chicken stock from the boiled chicken, and add the boiled chicken pieces. Stir well. Cover the pot and allow all to cook for about five minutes under high heat.

Then add the dried fish and turn the heat down. Press the fish down to immerse them in the soup. Simmer. Taste for salt. You may add some additional stock cubes to enhance the taste to your preference. 

6. Finally add a generous amount of shredded fresh basil/scent leaves. 

Serve with eba, pounded yam, starch etc. Also excellent served with rice or boiled yam.

If you have any questions regarding how Banga soup can be prepared, kindly drop us a comment in the section below, and we promise you a swift response.