YAM RECIPES (ASARO)

YAM RECIPES (ASARO)

Asaro, also known as Ebe (pronounced eh-beh) is a native meal to the Yorubas. It is very similar to Ikokore in the sense that it is yam, cooked in a mix of blended peppers. The only difference is that Ikokore uses water yam while Asaro uses regular yam.
It’s a one pot meal and doesn’t take too long to prepare.

Ingredients
1 m tuber of yam
1 large red bell pepper
1 m red onion
2 cloves garlic

Ginger (same size as 2 garlic cloves)
3 plum tomatoes (or 1 m/l regular tomato)
3 scotch bonnet peppers
Handful kpanla or stock fish (boil to soften)
1 tbsp Adobo seasoning
1 tsbp Curry powder
2 stock cubes
2 bay leaves
3-4 cups water
1/2 cup Canola oil
1/2 cup Palm oil

-         Rinse tuber of yam to rid it of dirt, sand etc. Cut into thick rounds and peel off the outer skin. Cut out any dark areas in the yam if there is any. Cut each round into cubes and in half, then cut each half into another half etc. Add cold water to a large bowl and rinse yam cubes. Drain and add more clean, cold water. Add cubed yam into cold water (to prevent yam from changing color).

-         Set aside for a few minutes. Heat pot over medium heat. Cut and blend red bell peppers, onion, tomatoes, scotch bonnet peppers, garlic and ginger. Add 3-4 cups water to blended mix. Add Canola and palm oil to pot. Add blended peppers etc. Cover and let boil over medium heat for 10 minutes.

                                                                                        

-         Add seasonings (stock cubes, curry, adobo, bay leaves). Stir, let boil for 5 minutes still over medium heat. Add cubed yam (careful, so pepper doesn’t splash; reduce heat if necessary). Drain kpanla (if soaked in water) and add to boiling pepper.

-         (If you reduced heat, turn it back up to medium.)

-          Stir and let cook for 20-25 minutes or till yam is fork tender. Once soft, use a potato masher to mash, or the back of a serving spoon or a fork. Mash and stir. You can choose not to mash everything, leaving some chunks. That depends on your choice.

-         Turn off heat. 

-         Serve while hot with meat of your choice.