Okra soup
{{Short description|Soup prepared with okra}}
File:Sayur oyong.JPG (okra soup) in clear light broth]]
Okra or Okro soup is primarily associated with the Igbo tribe of Nigeria and is prepared using the edible green seed pods of the okra flowering plant as a primary ingredient. Other vegetables can be added to the soup as well, such as ewedu, kerenkere, or Ugu leaf. Depending on the specific variant being prepared, okra soup can have a clear broth or be deep green in colour, much like the okra plant itself. Okra (and, by extension, okra soup) can have a slippery or "slimy" mouthfeel. The edible green seed pods can also be used in other stews and soups, such as the American dish gumbo.{{cite book | last=Walker | first=S.S. | title=African Roots/American Cultures: Africa in the Creation of the Americas | publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers | year=2001 | isbn=978-0-7425-0165-2 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EJzHiqBPJCoC&pg=PA64 | page=64}}
Nigeria
In Nigeria, okra soup is a delicacy and is popular amongst Igbos, Yorubas, Efiks, Hausas, and other Nigerian ethnic groups.{{Cite book |last=Ukegbu |first=Kavachi Michelle |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1241244901 |title=The art of fufu : a guide to the culture and flavors of a West African tradition |date=2021 |others=Grubido |isbn=978-1-62634-596-6 |location=Austin, Texas |oclc=1241244901}} In Yoruba, it is referred to as obe lla .{{cite book | last=Badiru | first=I. | last2=Badiru | first2=D. | title=Isi Cookbook: Collection of Easy Nigerian Recipes | publisher=iUniverse | year=2013 | isbn=978-1-4759-7671-7 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pDj5SB3KF8UC&pg=PA31}}{{Cite web |last=Onyeakagbu |first=Adaobi |date=2021-12-22 |title=How to cook the Igbo-Ora recipe, Ilasa soup |url=https://www.pulse.ng/lifestyle/food-travel/how-to-cook-the-igbo-ora-recipe-ilasa-soup/v2v08k9 |access-date=2022-06-29 |website=Pulse Nigeria |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=2018-06-02 |title=Enjoy your amala with ilasa soup |url=https://tribuneonlineng.com/enjoy-your-amala-with-ilasa-soup/ |access-date=2022-06-29 |website=Tribune Online |language=en-GB}}{{Cite web |date=2021-10-17 |title=Foods, herbs to manage female infertility |url=https://punchng.com/foods-herbs-to-manage-female-infertility/ |access-date=2022-06-29 |website=Punch Newspapers |language=en-US}}
China
Chinese okra soup is a "country style dish often served at family meals".{{cite book | last=Aksomboon | first=K. | last2=Aksomboon | first2=S. | last3=Hiranaga | first3=D. | last4=(Restaurant) | first4=Siam Cuisine | title=Thai Cooking from the Siam Cuisine Restaurant | publisher=North Atlantic Books | year=1989 | isbn=978-1-55643-074-9 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xnpuu96dcI4C&pg=PA60| page=60}} Chinese okra differs significantly from the varieties of okra commonly available in the West.
Indonesia
In Indonesian cuisine, okra soup is called sayur oyong. It is usually served in clear chicken broth with rice vermicelli (bihun) or mung bean vermicelli (sohun), with slices of bakso (ground beef surimi).
Japan
In Japanese cuisine, okra and {{transl|ja|nagaimo}} are usually used as an addition or variation to miso soup.
United States
In the United States, the first recipe for okra soup was published in 1824 in the book The Virginia Housewife.{{cite book | last=Smith | first=A.F. | title=Food and Drink in American History: A "Full Course" Encyclopedia [3 Volumes]: A "Full Course" Encyclopedia | publisher=ABC-CLIO | year=2013 | isbn=978-1-61069-233-5 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o7gxBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA424| page=424}}{{cite book | last=Smith | first=A.F. | title=The Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink | publisher=Oxford University Press, USA | series=Oxford Companions | year=2007 | isbn=978-0-19-530796-2 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AoWlCmNDA3QC&pg=PA551 | page=551}} After this initial publication, okra soup was commonly included in American cookbooks. In the late 1800s, okra soup recipes were commonly published in The New York Times.{{cite book | last=Hesser | first=A. | title=The Essential New York Times Cookbook: Classic Recipes for a New Century | publisher=W. W. Norton | year=2010 | isbn=978-0-393-24767-1 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QWrVBAAAQBAJ&pg=PT204}} American okra soup can be prepared using canned, frozen, or fresh okra.{{cite book | title=The Picayune Creole Cook Book | publisher=Times-Picayune publishing Company | year=1922 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pxYEAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA18 | page=18}} It is a traditional soup in Savannah, Georgia and Charleston, South Carolina.{{cite book | last=Deen | first=P. | last2=Clark | first2=M. | title=Paula Deen's Southern Cooking Bible: The New Classic Guide to Delicious Dishes with More Than 300 Recipes | publisher=Simon & Schuster | year=2011 | isbn=978-1-4165-6407-2 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jUw66qJg-PYC&pg=PA75}}
Gallery
File:Star of David okra - Soup Star.jpg|okra - Soup
File:Miso soup with okra and nagaimo by yomi955.jpg|Miso soup with okra and nagaimo
File:Okro Soup.jpg|Okro Soup
File:Okro soup with shrimps,dried fish,cow leg and tail with meat.jpg|Nigerian okra soup
See also
{{Portal|Food}}
References
{{Reflist}}
Further reading
- {{cite book | title=Good Housekeeping | issue=v. 8 | year=1889 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hFs2AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA183| page=183}} – Poor-Man's Okra Soup
- {{cite book | last=Fowler | first=D.L. | last2=Carrington | first2=J.R. | title=The Savannah Cookbook | publisher=Gibbs Smith, Publisher | year=2008 | isbn=978-1-4236-0224-8 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7Y-rCfsqL5cC&pg=PA60 | page=60}}
- {{cite book | last=Nzeadibe | first=R.E. | title=The 2nd Migration | publisher=Xlibris Corporation | year=2009 | isbn=978-1-4653-2783-3 |page=55| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RWskahZlyV4C&pg=PA55}}{{Self-published inline|certain=yes|date=December 2017}}
External links
{{Commons}}
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmPxvvojyOo Video: Nigerian Okra Soup]
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIbD9hc4Jt4 Video: Nigerian Okra Soup with Fresh Fish & Assorted Meat]
- [https://lowcarbafrica.com/okro-soup-african-okra-soup/ Easy Nigerian Okra Soup Recipe]
{{African cuisine}}
{{Soups}}