Char-grilled Garden Egg Fritters + 4 Years Blogging

July 6, 2016 ~ Sophie ~ 6 Comments

Its a new month and this one has come with a birthday. It is incredible what has happened over the course of four years! Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would accomplish all these amazing things. It is stuff dreams are made of and ~~sometimes~~ frequently I pinch myself. I am grateful that all the struggles, failures and hard work bring us to here, in this moment. I would not have it any other way. I am also grateful for all the amazing people I have met along the way. I do not know what the future holds but with all that has happened I cant help but be excited for the next four years. With that said, expect a huge surprise (that I am working on day and night) at the end of the month, a brand new feature and much more soon. You can follow me on Instagram for behind the scenes and some random awesome food inspiration.

Now for a celebratory dish, I thought it would be a fun and great idea to for us to cook up something totally new and exciting. After all that is what AKIU is about. If you are not familiar with garden eggs (ntula), here is a link I found to help you out. They are common in central Uganda and are used to make soups and stews.

We have a ~~roughly 2 by 4 meters~~ garden (sorry I have no concept of space) full of garden eggs. The thing with growing a lot of the same food is that there comes a time when you run out of creative ways to cook it. Now that I have discovered this new twist on garden eggs, I feel like I should cook them all like this so they are easier to eat. This dish is great for garden egg lovers and a fun surprise for the haters.

What you will need:

16 Green garden eggs (ntula)

½ C. Flour

¼ C. Parsley, finely chopped

1 Large egg

½ C. Water

2 Tbsp. Mukene powder

1 Tsp. Ginger

½ Tsp. Cinnamon

Salt

Pepper

Oil for frying

Observations:

There are many varieties of garden eggs. I used the green bitter ones. If you do not like the bitter taste, use the white ones.
To avoid cooking eggs that are damaged inside, look carefully for holes on the skin of eggs. Eggs without holes are not damaged.
Char-grilling the garden eggs adds a smoky flavour.
If you do not have mukene powder, use fish sauce.
You can use any herb you have around. I had parsley so I used it.
You may need more or less water depending on your desired consistency of the batter.
If the eggs are overly charred, you can remove some of the charred pieces but leave the flesh.

Method

Wash and half the garden eggs. Char-grill them on a charcoal stove. Remove from fire. Set aside to cool.
In a separate bowl, add flour, ginger, cinnamon, salt, pepper, and mukene powder. Mix well. Next add the parsley, egg and water and mix till a think fine batter forms.
Place a pan of oil on fire and wait for it to get hot
Cut off the stalks and then dip the egg halves in batter. Deep fry till they are golden brown.
Serve as is or with your favourite soup, stew or dip.

If you try this recipe, share your creations with #AkitchenInUg

🙂

Sophie

Colorful Tender Pumpkin Stir-fry

February 17, 2016February 17, 2016 ~ Sophie ~ 6 Comments

This is what happens when you end up harvesting a young pumpkin. In life there are times when we totally do insane things which in turn end up being masterpieces. I keep saying I have had my fair share of failed recipes in the kitchen. But see, the thing with failure is that it pushes—forces even— you to keep trying till you get a better outcome. I believe failure is necessary for success. But words are easier said than done. Having to create and develop recipes in the past couple of years has taught me to take failure as a part of the natural human process because without failure, we really would not know what success is. Now this pumpkin stir fry first fell into my category of failed recipes but over time with constant trying and recreation, it is what it is now. Because now I realize, similar to this amazing stir fry, harvesting a baby tender pumpkin is not a waste after all.

What you will need:

1 C. Young tender pumpkin, thinly sliced

1 C. Carrots, julienned

1/2 C. Green pepper, julienned

1/2 C. Green beans, julienned

1 Large onion, thinly sliced

2 Garlic cloves finely chopped

1/2 Tsp. Ginger, finely chopped

1 Tbsp. Dark Soy sauce diluted with 2 Tbsp. water

Black pepper

A pinch of sugar

Salt

Oil

Method

Place a pan on high heat. Add oil. Add the pinch of sugar and let it melt and turn slightly brown(but not burnt). Add garlic and ginger. Let it brown a little and then add the pumpkin. Keep stirring. After 3 minutes, add the green beans and keep stirring. Add the onions and carrots. Next add the green pepper. Keep stirring so they don’t burn since the heat is high. Pour in the soy sauce little by little while continuing to stir till the vegetables are slightly tender but still with a bite. Sprinkle salt and pepper and give one last stir before removing from fire. Serve hot.

Elections are tomorrow and I hope and pray you all have a smooth voting session.

🙂

Sophie

AKIU’s Top 7 Warm Hearty Soups And Stews

January 19, 2016 ~ Sophie ~ 10 Comments

Last week, I (for the first time in a really long time) read the newspaper for a particular day. It mostly comprised of the issues surrounding the upcoming elections. There was one article that grabbed my attention though. It was about how the weather has completely changed thanks to the El Nino effect. I was prepared to get dusted since January is generally known to be a dusty month. But now that the days are met with half gloom/fog and half rain, it is time to get cozy. Right? Here are seven soups and stews that will add warmth to your mornings and even whole days!

Smoky Eggplant Permesan Meatballs in Homemade Sauce

Creamy Pumpkin Soup

Creamy Potato Soup

And this hearty Katogo too!

Usually I prepare the soups in the night and then warm them up in the morning. Hoe you get warmer with these.

Also, I have received tremendous response from you regarding the free e-book I gave out a few months ago. Over 115 downloads have happened. Thank you. If you haven’t got a chance to get a copy for yourself, please do so before I take it down (in a few weeks’ time).

🙂

Sophie