Egusi

Egusi

Whole melon seeds, cleaned and sorted, with nothing added. Grinding them yourself is the difference between a thin soup and a thick one — the seeds keep their oil until you break them, so a bag ground fresh gives you a richer pot than pre-milled powder ever will.

Product of Nigeria, imported by our family in Ottawa.

Key Features

• Whole seeds, not powder — grind them fresh and the soup thickens properly
• Nothing added — no preservatives, no fillers, no anti-caking agents
• Cleaned and sorted — ready to grind straight from the bag
• Product of Nigeria — imported by Poshy Foods Inc, Ottawa
• Bilingual labels — English and French, to Canadian food-safety standards

How to Use

1. Grind the seeds to a coarse paste or powder, depending on how thick you want the soup.
2. Fry the ground egusi in hot palm oil until it darkens and smells nutty.
3. Simmer with your stock, meat or fish, and leafy greens until the oil separates and rises.

Serve with pounded yam, eba, fufu or rice.

Storage

Keep the sealed bag in a cool, dry cupboard. Once ground, store in an airtight container and use it sooner rather than later — ground seeds lose their oil and their flavour far faster than whole ones.