Lisa George
Ewa Agoyin is a delicious pepper sauce that is made in Yoruba land in Nigeria and usually served with well-cooked beans. To some of us that grew up in Lagos state should have had a lot of this for breakfast.
Sometimes, we even add fried plantain and assorted meat, it’s to die for!
The Yorubas sure have a twist to everything. There is stew and there is Ewa agoyin (pepper sauce for beans) and just as you might have guessed, they are all delicious.
First, we are going to be making Ewa Agoyin (pepper sauce) using the ingredients below. Preparing the beans is the easy part, you will find the recipe at the end of this post.
- 1 cup of dried crushed chillies/peppers
- 1 white onion
- 1 red onion
- 1 Seasoning cube
- Salt to taste
- Palm oil – 2 cups
- 3 cups of beans/black eyed peas
You can use any species of pepper/chilli as long as it is dried and ground.
I used a combination of one red onion and one white onion.
About two cups of palm oil (red oil) to make my Ewa agoyin (pepper sauce).
- Step 1
Slice half of the red onion and combine the remaining half with the white onions, pepper, a cup of water and blend.
You get this:
- Step 2
Set your cooking pot on heat, add the two cups of palm oil and allow to heat but don’t let it bleach. About 3 minutes should do it. All through the cooking process, you don’t let it bleach. the red colour is just what set’s it apart from the regular tomato stew.
- Step 3
Once the oil is heated you can add the sliced red onions. Fry the onion for about 3 minutes before adding the ground pepper/chillies, onions and water combination.
- Step 4
Now you fry. This pepper sauce is not like the regular tomato stew so you would be frying for the next 15-25 minutes. In no time you will notice the sauce drying and be turning dark. if it is not dark, it’s not Ewa agoyin sauce.
You need the pepper to fry till it takes on the form and texture of small pebbles, or grainy like, like sand. So you would spend the next few minute in the kitchen stirring this sauce.
Partly the reason we use the wooden spoon. I think it does a better job than the regular cooking spoon. lots of splashes will occur at first, it dies down with time.
The sauce is already turning dark, we are not yet there but we would definitely get there.
By this time, your kitchen should have been enveloped by the wonderful aroma. If your neighbours are from Yoruba, they should be gathering together already.
Add a cube of seasoning and salt to taste. Fry for another 3-4 minutes and you are done with the making of Ewa agoyin (Yoruba pepper sauce).
It should be dried but not burned.
Boiling the beans, you will need:
- 3 cups of beans
- Half teaspoon of salt
- Serving: 3 Persons.
In Nigeria, we have both brown and white beans (black-eyed peas). you can cook any colour or species.
Boil about 5 cups of water, add the beans and allow it to boil for about 5 minutes, turn off the heat, wash and set aside.
Boil another 5 cups of water and start cooking the beans in it. You can add more water in-between. You want it really soft. Add a teaspoon of salt.
Cook until the beans is really soft then go ahead and serve with the pepper sauce and bread.
This is how Ewa Agoyin is served in Nigeria.
All thanks to AllNigerianFoods for this recipe!
