How To Prepare Pepper Soup

Out of all Nigerian soups, pepper soup is one of the most versatile ones. You can stick to the original recipe or add your own twist to the ingredients and cooking process. Moreover, you can make Ghanaian pepper soup with all kinds of proteins, including chicken, catfish, and goat meat. Find out how to cook pepper soup right now!


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1. Pepper soup ingredients

The first thing in any pepper soup recipe is the ingredient list. Make sure you have the following Nigerian pepper soup ingredients at hand to make the most delicious pot of soup!

  • 1 kg of your meat of choice
  • 2 onions
  • 1 scotch bonnet pepper
  • Dried or fresh chili pepper
  • 2 stock cubes
  • 3 Ehu seeds
  • 1 tsp ground Uziza
  • Scent leaves or fresh parsley, salt, and pepper to taste

2. How to prepare pepper soup

When you know the basic way of how to make Nigerian pepper soup, you can alter the recipe any way you like. For example, you can add some other Nigerian pepper soup spices like Utazi leaves, or you can leave some of them behind if you’re not a fan of overly spicy food. Follow these steps and find out how to make chicken pepper soup.

  1. Wash the chicken, remove the skin if needed, and chop the chicken into 3x3cm chunks.
  2. Put the chicken into a large pot and fill 3/4 of the pot with water. Place the pot on the stove and start heating the water at low heat.
  3. After approximately 30 minutes from the start, you will notice oil being released from chicken. This is where you need to add the rest of the ingredients for the soup: finely diced onions, chopped bonnet pepper, scent leaves, and all of the dry spices.
  4. As all of the ingredients are finally in the pot, allow the soup to boil for another 15 to 30 minutes to get that distinctive pepper soup flavor.
  5. Turn the heat off and serve immediately. Pepper soup tastes fantastic with garlic, plantain, yam, or even a slice of freshly baked bread. Now you know how to prepare chicken pepper soup!

3. How to make catfish pepper soup

Catfish pepper soup, which is also known as Point and Kill due to the way it’s eaten in Nigerian restaurants, is a great alternative for the meat version of the soup. If you want to try pepper soup with another protein, here is how to prepare catfish pepper soup.

First, clean the fish and cut it into slices as thick as your finger. Put the slices into boiling water, stir and scoop the fish out immediately. This is done in order to prevent the fish slices from falling apart while cooking.

The rest of the cooking process is similar to the basic pepper soup recipe: first, bring the fish up to a boil, then add spices and simmer for up to 30 minutes before serving. This is how to make fish pepper soup!

4. How to make goat meat pepper soup

Goat meat pepper soup is one of the oldest versions of this Nigerian cuisine classic. If you want to go for the traditional flavor, cook yours with goat meat.

The process of making pepper soup with goat meat isn’t that different from the rest of the recipes. The only thing to keep in mind is that goat meat is famously tough and takes longer to cook, so it’s better to use a pressure cooker. If you don’t have one, then cook the meat for as long as needed for it becomes soft, then add the rest of the pepper soup spice and simmer for 15 more minutes.

5. How to prepare pepper soup with intestine

Pepper soup with intestine is also called the assorted cow meat pepper soup. You can use intestines exclusively (heart, lung, liver, and intestines), or you can mix them with beef.

Here the most important thing you need to do is cleaning the intestines very thoroughly right after bringing them home from the market, removing any liquids or debris that may be still inside. Then chop the intestines into bite-sized pieces and boil them in a large pot until every piece becomes tender.

It may take you a while, so make sure not to let the water dry out, pouring in extra water when needed. Once the intestines become tender, continue cooking the soup as explained above.

Wondering how to cook yam pepper soup? Simply cook your favorite version of the soup and boil the yam separately, serving them together in a soup bowl!


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My name is Inna. I am a content writer with an English and literature background. As a mother of a 4-year old son, I love learning about children’s health and development, as well as finding new interesting toys and activities for my little one. I am also in love with all things tech and always keep my finger on the pulse of new smartphone and gadget releases. Another big passion of mine is beauty and makeup – every day I read about new trends in skin care and makeup and always look forward to trying them. Plus, I love pop culture, travelling, crafts, and anything that can make our daily life more thrilling!