Abacha is one dish that always takes me back to a place and time. That place is Enugu in Nigeria and it represents most of my childhood. I never bothered to learn how to make abacha until I left Enugu and couldn’t find good abacha. It was always available from street vendors, warm and spicy served with fried fish and assorted garnish. It is eaten mostly in eastern Nigeria and the Enugu people make the best!
Abacha is made from cassava root, which has been peeled, cooked, grated and dried. I guess this is a preservation method to ensure that abacha was available all year round. I spent most Easter and summer holidays in the village with my grandparents between ages 7-11, so I have had my fair share of harvesting and processing abacha with my grandmother, I didn’t enjoy the farm part of it but peeling and cooking it was great fun. The reward was enjoying the cooked freshly grated cassava soaked in water with some coconut!
Some people call this dish African salad, I guess it’s the closest thing we have to a salad with only local ingredients. Abacha is mostly eaten in between meals, at hangout spots. I usually do not fry mackerel because I consider it an oily fish and prefer to bake it but for abacha, I make an exception and its because I always had it that way.
There are different ways to make abacha, I love to make the ncha with palm oil and potash. Some people do not like potash and prefer to fry the palm oil and make a sauce with all the ingredients and add the abacha to it. I have listed the standard ingredients that make great abacha, don’t miss the ugba I beg you! This dish can be eaten warm or cold, I prefer warm. In boarding school, we would soak abacha; make the sauce in a bowl and toss it. It wasn’t great, it was cold, had no onions, fish or ugba but it was the closest thing to home.
This dish is really not complicated, all the ingredients can be found in a Nigerian grocery store (if you live abroad). Efuru as a spice makes a lot of difference, it’s called African nutmeg but its spicier and more intense, please resist the temptation to use regular nutmeg, they are not mates! Enjoy with a cold glass of palm wine, I really want some now.
Yields 4-6
Abacha is dish made from cassava root, cassava is a great source of carbohydrates and dietary fibre. This is a spicy and delicious salad, perfect for any time of the day. Enjoy with some fish, garden egg and greens.
15 minPrep Time
5 minCook Time
20 minTotal Time
Save RecipeIngredients
- 250g dried abacha (about 5 handfuls)
- Dry fish (as required, washed, torn and deboned)
- 2 tablespoon ground crayfish
- 1-2 teaspoons potash
- 2 tablespoons hot water (for mixing potash)
- ¾ cup palm oil
- 1½ teaspoon salt
- 1 seasoning cube (optional such as Maggi, you will need to cut down the salt if you use)
- 2 scotch bonnets (crushed in a mortar or thinly sliced)
- Ugba (as required)
- Cooked cow skin (ponmo, as needed)
- 1 onion (sliced thinly)
- 2 African nutmeg/calabash nutmeg/efuru (shelled and lightly roasted, ground)
- ½ teaspoon ground dried chili
- Garden eggs (garnish)
Instructions
- Soak abacha in cold water for about 10 minutes and drain when soft.
- In a large pot, add potash and mix with hot water. Add the palm oil immediately to form a creamy orange looking paste, it is called ‘’Ncha’’ in Igbo.
- Add hot pepper, salt, crayfish, seasoning cube (if using), efuru and dried chili.
- Add dried fish, ugba, onions and ponmo. Taste for seasoning. Add abacha toss to fully incorporate.
- If you like your abacha hot, set pot on medium heat and warm it through. Serve immediately.
- Serve garnished with sliced onions, garden egg, green leaves (garden egg leaves or spinach) and serve with fried or roasted fish.
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