Learn how to make popular and flavorful West African okro soup with seafood and you'll understand why it has inspired global Black cuisine.
Happy Black History Month! Each year, I look forward to celebrating our culture through cuisine. Today, I'll teach you how to make okro soup with shrimps and spinach quickly (just the way I like it) with plenty of tips to make okro soup like a Nigerian aunty.
And since Black history isn't taught everywhere, we'll trace how okro soup has influenced well-known Black cuisine in the Western hemisphere. Let's get into the delicious details!
In 2023, the theme of Black History Month is Black Resistance and Eat the Culture is recognizing the remarkable and, frankly, underrated resistance of our ancestors in bringing culinary traditions across the Atlantic to shape the vibrance of Black cuisine that we know and love today. They physically and mentally carried African foodways across the deadly Middle Passage to pass down through generations.
This year’s Black History Month Virtual Potluck traces popular dishes of the Diaspora from their West African roots to North America and beyond. You can grab the full list of recipes from this year’s collaboration on the Eat the Culture website. Share these recipes with your friends and loved ones and follow each participant by using the hashtag #BHMVP2023 on Instagram.
Table of Contents
What foods are like okro soup?
What is okra soup made of? Okro soup is a savory main dish that combines okra, meat, fish, and spices cooked in palm oil. It has traveled with our ancestors from Nigeria to be adapted in South America and the American South. Today, I’m teaching you how to make okro soup with shrimp and spinach from Nigeria and encourage you to follow the story through caruru baiano from Brazil and okra gumbo from the American Gulf States.
What You'll Need for this Recipe
Finding the ingredients for okro soup in the United States is much easier nowadays. Here's what to add to your grocery list.
- Okra is the base of the soup and what gives okro soup its characteristic draw or viscous texture. Either fresh or frozen works.
- Spinach adds additional fiber, color, and texture. Fresh and chopped or frozen and thawed works. Spinach is not traditionally part of okro soup and can, in fact, be its own soup so feel free to leave it out for a more traditional okro soup recipe.
- Onion is sometimes left out of okro soup if the cook believes it reduces the draw but my secret tips will make sure you get the perfect okro soup with onion.
- Red Bell Pepper adds familiar flavor and I combine it with the onion.
- Shrimp or prawns is a beloved part of seafood okro soup. Fresh or frozen and thawed works. You can also use dried shrimps.
- Smoked or Dried Fish can be found at African and Caribbean markets in the US.
- Smoked Turkey is one of my family's favorite proteins for Nigerian stews and soups--typically legs or wings.
- Crayfish is a Nigerian pantry staple ingredient that seems small but you'll notice when it's missing! Don't skip it.
- Sea Salt
- Black Pepper
- Palm Oil is indigenous to Africa and adds earthy, savory flavor. If you don't have access to palm oil, use another cooking oil with a high smoke point.
- Maggi Cubes add a flavor foundation and saltiness to many popular Nigerian dishes, including suya and jollof.
Is there a difference between how Yorubas and Igbos make okro soup? Okro soup is popular with most Nigerian ethnic groups and differences are from person to person or family to family as everyone has their preferences. Other common optional ingredients include ground egusi (gourd seeds), iru (locust bean) and collard greens.
If you enjoy this recipe, you'll also love my Rice & Stew with Salmon and savory Naija Stewed Beans.
What does okro soup taste like?
Nigerian okro soup is made to taste outside of the core ingredients so it can be spicy, smoky, etc. depending on what you add. This recipe is savory and earthy with smoky and umami flavors.
What kind of meat goes with okra? I like okra soup with dried fish, shrimp, and turkey. You can use any combination of meats and/or seafood in okro soup. Popular options include oxtail, goat meat, catfish, and shrimp. Just keep in mind that changing the proteins will impact the cooking time. I aim for about one to 1 ½ pound of protein, in total for a nice texture and balance of nutrients.
Tips & Tools for this Recipe
Grab a sharp knife and cutting board to prepare your produce. I slice okra by hand for soup but you can also use a mandolin or food processor. You'll also need a blender or food processor to puree some of the okra. Pull out both a large pot and a small saucepan, as well as a wooden cooking spoon.
How to store? Refrigerate extra okro soup in an airtight container. It will keep for up to seven days this way.
Can I freeze it? Alternatively, you can freeze okro soup for about three to six months. I recommend dividing into serving size portions in freezer bags or airtight containers before freezing for easy reheating.
What if I don’t like my okra slimy? Honestly, this is probably not the dish for you. Check out my notes on the proper texture of this soup below!
How to make my okro soup draw?
Okro soup is what is known as a "draw soup" in Nigeria. There are others, including ogbono soup and ewedu soup. When made properly, it should have a thick, viscous texture--sometimes described as slimy–-from the okra. It literally draws or pulls and stretches when lifted. Here are my tips for that coveted drip:
Puree some or all of the okra, depending on the texture you like. The more pureed okra used, the thicker the soup will be and the more draw it will have.
If using frozen ingredients, be sure to remove as much excess water as possible so as to not dilute the flavor and texture of the soup. Wring thawed spinach between paper towels to squeeze out the water. Alternatively, you can use fresh spinach.
Reduce the heat before adding okra to your soup. Frying or cooking okra at very high heat reduces the mucilaginous texture.
Does onion reduce the draw of okro soup? Not in my experience. I puree the onion with red pepper in this recipe but you can also include it diced or sliced depending on the texture you like.
How to Serve Okro Soup
Okro stew is commonly served with a swallow food like fufu (pounded yam, eba, etc.) or amala. Because of its chunkier texture, seafood okro soup also pairs well with rice.
How do I eat it? Use your fingers to scoop up okro soup with a ball of swallow food or use a spoon if eating it alone or with rice.
More Favorite Nigerian Recipes
Dodo (fried plantain)
Ewa Riro (savory stewed beans)
Yaji Spice (suya spice)
Is this recipe PCOS friendly?
Yes, people with PCOS can enjoy okro spinach stew, too!. It is made from whole foods, high in protein and fiber, and lower in carbs. Okra supports overall gut health and spinach is high in vitamin B, which helps with insulin resistance.
I hope you'll get your fill of this Nigerian delicacy soon and very soon. And sharing is caring so be sure to pin the recipe for later and follow me over on Pinterest. Thanks for reading!
Seafood Okro Soup Recipe
Nigerian Okro Soup with Spinach and Shrimps
Ingredients
- 3 maggi cubes or bouillon cubes, divided
- ½ pound smoked turkey leg or wings
- ½ tablespoon crushed red pepper optional
- sea salt to taste
- water
- ½ pound smoked fish
- ½ pound shrimp
- 1 red bell pepper
- ½ onion
- 1 pound okra fresh or frozen
- 2 tablespoons palm oil
- ¼ cup crayfish
- black pepper to taste
- 1 ½ cup spinach fresh and chopped or frozen and thawed
Instructions
Cooking the turkey
- Crush maggi cubes into powder form and add one third to a small saucepan with turkey, crushed red pepper, and salt. Pour in enough water to cover the turkey and cook over medium heat for about thirty minutes. This step can be done more quickly in a pressure cooker, if needed.
- When finished cooking, shred turkey meat from the bone and set aside. Reserve two cups of the cooking water. Meanwhile, prepare the remaining soup ingredients.
Soup Ingredient Prep
- Debone and wash the dried fish thoroughly and set aside. Remove shells and tails from shrimp and clean.
- Cut onion and bell pepper into chunks and pulse in a blender or food processor to form a puree.
- Wash okra, pat dry, and divide in half. With one half, cut off and discard the tops then slice the okra into thin rounds. Set aside.
- Add remaining okra to a blender or food processor with a splash of water and pulse until a puree forms (about 20 seconds). The puree should be very thick and sticky. This is good!
Cooking the soup
- Add palm oil to a large pot over medium-high heat and warm it through (about two minutes). Add onion and pepper puree to hot oil and cook until fragrant and slightly thickened (about 5 minutes).
- Add turkey meat, reserved cooking water, smoked fish, remaining crushed maggi, and crayfish to pot and stir to combine.
- Reduce heat to medium and vigorously stir in okra puree until uniform. The puree will meld with the other ingredients the more you stir it and the more it warms up.
- Add in sliced okra and shrimps. Cook until shrimps are opaque and have a bright coral color (about three minutes).
- Taste the soup then add salt and pepper to preference. Stir in the spinach, breaking up any chunks, then soup remove from heat and serve.
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