In this post, I will show you how to make nkwobi without potash (kaun/akawun).
Nkwobi is a delicious dish of well-cooked, tender cow leg mixed with thickened palm oil flavoured with spices and peppers. This delicacy, usually enjoyed as a snack in the evening, originates in the Igbo-speaking part of Nigeria but is widely sold in restaurants (joints) across the country.
The cut of meat that we call the “cow leg” is the cow’s heel. The meat cut is usually tough and bony, but once well cooked, it turns into a flavourful gelatinous meat, which is a delight to eat. It is a cheaper cut of mea that is used to bulk out and add texture to soups and sauces.
Garnished with onions and utazi leaves to balance the creaminess, nkwobi is traditionally served in a wooden bowl called okwa. This wooden bowl comes up and is deceptively shallow, hence why nkwobi is usually piled high up in the bowl.
How To Prepare Nkowbi
Here are the ingredients you need…
- Cow leg
- Onions
- Bouillon cubes
- Palm oil
- Bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- Ground pepper
- Ground crayfish
- Roasted Ehu (Calabash nutmeg)
- Salt
- Ugba (African oil seed)
- Rocket
A few notes about the ingredients...
- Baking soda: Traditionally, potash (kaun, akanwu) is mixed into the palm oil to form the creamy light orange emulsion, which is associated with nkwobi. However, baking soda does the job as well, and it is more accessible than potash. Therefore, depending on what is available, you can either use potash or baking soda. Potash will not dissolve in liquid like baking soda – if you use it, mix it with water, then sieve the water carefully into the palm oil.
- Rocket: I couldn’t get fresh Utazi and used rocket as a substitute. Rocket is a leafy green vegetable widely available here in the UK. It has a slightly bitter and peppery taste, which makes it a good substitute for utazi. If you’re not a fan of this, you can also use spinach to garnish the nkwobi.
- Ugba (African oil bean seed): This ingredient is difficult to find outside of Nigeria, but check in your local African store if they have it. For those around London, I buy Ugba from Ades or dried ugba from etsy (soak in water before use) If you can’t find it, leave it out, your nkwobi will still be delicious.
- Other Meats: Although cow heel is the most common meat used to make nkowbi, I read that it could also be made with other meats like goat meat or chicken. The process is the same – cook the meat and mix into the palm oil sauce.
How To Make It...
Wash the cow leg and pour into a pressure cooker with three cups of water. Slice one onion and add into the pressure cooker. Add the bouillon cubes with some salt.
Leave to cook for 20 mins after the pot comes up to pressure, then remove from heat. If you’re cooking in a regular pot, it could take between 90 mins – 2 hrs.
Separate the meat from the leftover cooking liquid.
Ground the calabash nutmeg in a mortar or coffee grinder. Slice the remaining onion and keep aside. Wash the sliced ugba and keep aside.
Mix the bicarbonate of soda with ¼ a cup of water. Then mix into the oil and stir for some time to emulsify. You will get light orange, thick creamy sauce at the end.
Add the pepper, crayfish, calabash nutmeg, and ugba into this mixture. Add some salt to taste and mix properly.
Mix in the cooked cow leg and stir in to coat with the oil.
Serve in a bowl and garnish with the onion rings.
Recipe FAQ
You will find this at most Asian and African shops. You can also find it in speciality butchers.
No. Nkwobi and isi ewu are different dishes, but they are made in the same way – by mixing into spiced palm oil. Nkwobi is made of cow heel, while Isi ewu is made of goat head.
Related Recipes
Nkwobi
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 kg Cow leg
- 2 Onions
- 2 Bouillon cubes
- ½ cup Palm oil
- 1 tablespoon Bicarbonate of soda/baking soda
- 1 teaspoon Ground pepper/pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoons Ground crayfish
- 4 Roasted Ehu (Calabash nutmeg)
- Salt to taste
- ½ cup Ugba (African oil seed)
- Rocket a handful
Instructions
- Wash the cow leg and pour into a pressure cooker with three cups of water. Slice one onion and add into the pressure cooker. Add the bouillon cubes with some salt.
- Leave to cook for 20 mins after the pot comes up to pressure, then remove from heat. If you’re cooking in a regular pot, it could take between 90mins – 2hrs.
- Separate the meat from the leftover cooking liquid.
- Ground the calabash nutmeg in a mortar or coffee grind. Slice the remaining onion and keep aside. Wash the sliced ugba and keep aside.
- Mix the bicarbonate of soda with ¼ a cup of water. Then mix into the oil and stir for some time to emulsify. You will get light orange, thick creamy sauce at the end.
- Add the pepper, crayfish, calabash nutmeg, and ugba into this mixture. Add some salt to taste and mix properly.
- Add the cooked cow leg and stir in to coat with the oil.
- Serve in a bowl and garnish with the onion rings.
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