In this post, I will be sharing a simple, vegan one-pot ayoyo soup inspired that is simple and pairs well with tuo zaafi. This recipe is inspired by a similar recipe I came across on youtube by the YouTuber Lami Cooks. Her video is not vegan so this recipe is a veganized version with the same flavours.
The star Ingredient: Ayoyo
Ayoyo soup is made using jute mallow leaves. These also go by different names across west Africa, including ademe, or ewedu, molokhia. Jute mallow is consumed across tropical sub-Saharan Africa as well as in some parts of the middle east. It is really unique in the sense that when cooked it has a mucilaginous texture similar to that of Okra. However, it really doesn’t have much of a strong flavour and it goes down quite easily.
Ayoyo soup
Traditional preparation of ayoyo is usually with water, dried fish and dawa dawa. This serves as one of the three components for traditional Tuo Zaafi — A dish popular from northern Ghana. Nigerians have a similar dish called Amala.
However, making the individual components for Tuo Zaafi (ayoyo soup and tomato stew) can be tedious. So, I was very happy to come across Lami’s recipe. A lot of people ask me how I learn to cook Ghanaian foods, and to be honest, youtube has taught me everything I know. I am not from Northern Ghana so I rely on YouTubers, like Lami, to figure out how to veganize recipes I enjoy but are not originally from my tribe.
This one-pot recipe combines elements of both the tomato stew and the ayoyo perfectly.
Ingredients
- Ayoyo: this is the star of the dish. I usually get this frozen at an African store. However, they are also sold fresh in the summer at certain middle eastern grocery stores.
- Meat substitute: Like many of my Ghanaian soups, I always opt for dry mushrooms (wood ear, oyster and shiitake) because they offer varied texture. I also used smoked tofu for the added saltiness, but you can use any combination of tofu you want or not add tofu
- Spices: For this recipe, we want a local and authentic flavour so we will be using calabash nutmeg, dawa dawa, grains of selim, anise seeds and star anise. If you are wondering what these spices are, please check out my blog post on indigenous African spices (click here). I will not encourage substituting any of these because they are very unique flavours that give this dish an authentic flavour.
- Aromatics: Like any Ghanaian soup and stew, the base is always a blend of onions, garlic, ginger, tomato and scotch bonnet pepper. The pepper can always be substituted or removed depending on your spice tolerance
- Broth: Since we are not going to be using meat, I usually use mushroom broth and better than bouillon no meat vegetable base. I love this stuff. These two add really nice depth of flavour to the dish. It makes everything taste just so rich.
- Red Palm Oil: Red palm oil adds richness to the stew. If you are curious about red palm oil in African cooking, please check out this link.
One Pot Ayoyo Soup
Ingredients
- 1 large handful of dry mushrooms
- 3 cups of water
- 2 cups of mushroom broth
- 500g of frozen ayoyo leaves thawed
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/3 cup of red palm oil
- 1 large onion
- 1 spring onion
- 3 cloves of garlic
- 2 tomatoes
- 1 large thumb of ginger
- 1 scotch bonnet pepper
- 1/2 tsp of dawa dawa
- 5 calabash nutmeg
- 2 tsp anise seeds
- 1 star anise
- 3 grains of Selim
- 1/2 tsp of ground cloves
- 1 tsp better than bouillon vegetarian no beef base
- 90g of smoked tofu **
- 50g enoki mushrooms **
- 1 stick of dry yuba **
Instructions
1. Heat the 3 cups of water you will use to rehydrate the mushrooms. Once the water has boiled, turn the heat off and add the mushrooms. Let it soak for 20 minutes.
2. After the 20 minutes has elapsed, remove the mushrooms and keep the liquid in the pot. We will use this to cook the ayoyo.
3. Turn the heat back on and boil the liquid till a rolling boil.
4. Add in your pack of ayoyo and break it up in the water till it is all mixed well. Add the baking soda. Let this cook for about 5 minutes. Do not stir it continuously
5. Blend your onion, spring onion, garlic, ginger and scotch bonnet pepper together
6. In a separate pot, heat the palm oil then add in your rehydrated mushrooms and saute for a few minutes.
7. Add in the blended mixture, stir for a few minutes, then add in about 1 cup of mushroom broth.
8. Add in the dawa dawa and then stir everything well.
9. let this mixture cook for about 5 minutes as you prep your spices.
10. In a mortar and pestle, grind the calabash nutmeg and anise seeds.
11. After grinding the spices, add it to the pot along with the star anise and the cloves.
12. Add in the better than bouillon then mix everything together.
13. Blend your tomatoes then add it to the pot.
14. Add in your yuba, smoked tofu and add another 1.5 cup of mushroom broth.
15. Let this mixture cook for another 10 minutes.
16. Taste for salt, then add the enoki mushrooms.
17. Add in the ayoyo you coked earlier and fold everything together gently. You do not want to overdo it otherwise you will mess up the sliminess of the soup.
18. Let all of this cook for 5 minutes then serve with tuo zaafi.
Notes
** these are 100% custiomizable. Feel free to use any tofu or mushroom of choice or you can completely omit these
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