EKPANG NKUKWO

Ekpang Nkukwo is a traditional dish to the Efiks and Ibibios i.e Cross River and Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria respectively. It's a meal made from grated coco yams, water yams or mixture of both rolled in pumpkin or coco yam leaves; cooked with distinct assorted meat, periwinkles, dried or stock fish with palm oil.
It's also widely enjoyed by the Bakweri, an ethnic group of the Republic of Cameroon.

It could take an hour and thirty minutes to have it served

HOW TO MAKE EKPANG NKUKWO

Ingredients
4 pounds cocoyam
4-5 bunch leafy greens (cocoyam leaves, collard greens, spinach, romaine lettuce)
½ pound boiled meat
1-2 cups dried fish
½ cup ground crayfish
½ medium onion chopped
1½ -2 cups palm oil /red oil
1 tablespoon of Maggie
1-tablespoon ground country onions (optional)
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 scotch bonnet pepper or any hot pepper (optional)
1 teapoons bitter leaf (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS:
wash the periwinkles repeatedly to have germs unstay.
Cut the meat in bite size chunks, season with salt, Maggi, and onions and cook until tender.
Peel Coco yam with a sharp knife, peeling away from your body carefully draw the paring knife down the body of the yam, being careful not to remove too much of the yam in during the process.
Look for any spoiled spots, such as bruising and discoloration, in the Cocoyam as you peel. Remove the spots away with the tip of the knife.
Cut into large chunks and wash immediately to prevent discoloration and leave them in cool water until ready to use.
Use a grater to grate the cocoyam gently then set aside.
Wash leaves and tear them into medium pieces, making sure there are no tears or holes in the leaves.
Oil a large pot with about ½ cup of palm oil then set aside.
Scoop the grated cocoyam mixture onto a leaf and wrap tightly (to form the shape of fingers) making sure the cocoyam is not sticking out.
Arrange wrapped cocoyam fingers in the oil pot in a circle leaving a hole in the middle.
Repeat until cocoyam mixture has been completely used up.
In a separate pot bring about 7 cups of water to a boil.
Add periwinkles, chopped onions, crayfish, fish, meat, salt, pepper, palm oil, and country onions to the pot.
Let it simmer for about 10 minutes, there should be no stirring at this point until most of the ekwang firms up.
Then after ekwang firms up add the meat if you have any with about 3 cups of water or just use 4-6 cups of hot water or more to the pot and let it cook on medium heat for about an hour until fully cooked. You may add more water to prevent burns.
Stirring should be kept at a minimum- to prevent the ekwang from becoming mushy.
Adjust for ekpang consistency with water, salt and pepper.

Your food is ready!