The moment you open a leaf, the aroma of red oil rises
Grate taro in the kitchen in the evening and a little stickiness stays on your hands. Unlike taro in a simmered dish, grated taro is white and heavy, and spreads slowly when you set it on a leaf. When the aroma of dried shrimp, red dendê oil and the steam of greens come together here, it is no longer a plain root dish but approaches the leaf-wrapped dishes of the coast that span southwestern Cameroon and southeastern Nigeria.
Ekpang Nkukwo is a dish also called Ekwang on the Cameroonian side. Grated cocoyam is wrapped in cocoyam leaves and simmered with smoked fish, crayfish, palm oil, chili and more. It is hard to gather the local leaves and smoked fish elsewhere, so this article uses taro, komatsuna, dried shrimp and dendê oil to keep the core of the texture and aroma.
Among Cameroonian dishes, sanga is a stew of leafy greens and corn, ndolé (in Japanese) a feast of bitter leaves and peanuts, and achu soup (in Japanese) a dish that pairs a yellow sauce with pounded root. Ekpang nkukwo adds the handwork of "wrapping." If you stir the pot too much it falls apart, so the cook's restraint becomes part of the flavor.
In English you find spellings such as Ekpang Nkukwo, Ekpang Nkwukwo and Ekwang. Some sources present Ekwang as a dish of the Oroko of southwestern Cameroon, and others present Ekpang Nkukwo as a dish of the Efik and Ibibio of southern Nigeria. This article writes "ekpang nkwukwo" and also notes the Cameroonian Ekwang.
The origin of ekpang nkukwo, and a table around leaves
It is difficult to fix the origin of this dish to one country. There are accounts presenting Ekwang as a dish of the Oroko, who live in the Ndian Division of southwestern Cameroon. In them, the labor of grating cocoyam and rolling it into leaves a little at a time is itself described as the dish's characteristic. Because the packets are layered in a pot and cooked without stirring hard, the stickiness of the root and the handling of the leaves decide the result.
On the other hand, an article introducing the food culture of the Efik and Ibibio of southern Nigeria describes Ekpang Nkukwo as a dish served on special occasions and at traditional weddings. As befits a table in a region near rivers, there are examples that combine seafood such as periwinkles, shrimp and crab. The name, the combination of roots, the kind of leaf and the choice of seafood vary by household and region, so it is closer to reality to read Ekpang Nkukwo and Ekwang not as separate things but as a dish with close methods handed down under different words.
Accounts also touch on the custom of serving it hot and eating by hand. When you unwrap the leaf, the aroma of red palm oil and the seafood stock come first, and you eat the soft root by coating it with the sauce a little at a time. Elsewhere, taro and komatsuna can substitute for the structure, but this does not fully reproduce the local ingredients. Put priority first on not breaking the packets, keeping at least a little dendê oil, and making up the depth of seafood with dried shrimp. If you can get cocoyam and large leaves, trying while recording where you replaced things makes the regional differences and household ingenuity easier to see.
The core to keep in a home kitchen
Ekpang nkukwo is easier to make if you decide first what not to break rather than gathering every ingredient. Looking for local cocoyam, cocoyam leaves, crayfish and smoked fish all at once makes shopping heavy. For a first try, concentrate on four things: the stickiness of the root, the structure of wrapping in leaves, the red oil, and the dried aroma of seafood.
| Element to keep | The local form | A realistic answer elsewhere |
|---|---|---|
| Stickiness of the root | Cocoyam, macabo, water yam | Grate taro and add a little potato starch only when it is loose |
| Wrapping leaf | Cocoyam leaves, collard greens and others | Blanch large komatsuna, outer bok choy leaves or spinach and use those |
| Red oil | Palm oil, red palm oil | Use edible dendê oil. The aroma is strong, so don't overdo it |
| Seafood aroma | Crayfish, smoked fish, periwinkles | Crush dried shrimp and use it; adjust the salt last |
| A no-stir way of cooking | Layer the packets and simmer gently | Once it boils, low heat. Shake the pot to move the flavor around and don't break things up with a wooden spoon |
Ingredients (serves 4)
The amount is easy to make in a heavy pot about 22 cm (9 in) across. Rolling the leaves takes time, so for a first try it is more pleasant not to cook for a large crowd.
Because dried shrimp is used, if you have a shellfish allergy, omit it and make up the aroma with 1 tsp dried shiitake powder and a little smoked salt. Taro and cocoyam can irritate the hands and mouth when raw. Wear gloves for peeling and grating, and simmer until no white remains in the root and the center is hot all the way through.
Shopping notes
What is worth seeking at a specialty grocer or online for this dish is dendê oil, which is hard to find in supermarkets, the dried shrimp that is the key to the aroma, and a heavy pot that resists scorching. Taro, greens, onion and garlic are fine from a nearby store. Putting ordinary ingredients too under shopping advice only blurs the buying decision.
Dendê oil gives strong aroma and color even in a small amount. It can also be used in acarajé (in Japanese) and moqueca baiana (in Japanese), so if you buy one bottle, cooking palm oil dishes in succession keeps it from going unused.
Dried shrimp is not a direct replacement for local crayfish or smoked fish. Even so, crushing it and adding a little puts a dried seafood aroma deep in the sauce and holds up against the heaviness of only leaves and root.
A thin-bottomed pot lets the starch of the root set first and stick to the bottom. A heavy pot makes it easier to keep a low simmer and to cook the packets through without breaking them.
How to make it: simmer gently without breaking the packets
For this dish it is important not to stir the pot once the packets are done. When you want to move the flavor around, don't scrape the bottom with a wooden spoon; hold the pot with both hands and tilt it a little. If you move it before the root sets, the filling flows out of the leaves and the whole pot becomes a heavy paste.
Where it tends to go wrong
| What happens | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Packets come unrolled | Stiff leaves, too much root, hard boil | Blanch the leaves 30 seconds and roll thinner. Lower to low heat as soon as it boils |
| The root inside is pasty, white and raw | Not enough simmering, packets too thick | Add 100 ml more water and simmer 10 minutes over low heat. Roll thinner next time |
| The bottom of the pot scorches | Thin pot, high heat, too little water | Use a heavy pot and a heat where only the edge bubbles. Add water along the side of the pot |
| The whole thing turns to paste | Stirred partway, watery root | Don't stir with a wooden spoon. Tilt the pot to move the flavor. If the root is loose, add starch |
| Feels oily | Too much dendê oil, no acidity | Reduce the dendê oil to 2 tbsp and add lime at the end |
How to eat it and plan a menu
Locally there are times when it is eaten by hand, but at home it is easier to eat in a deep dish with warm rice, boiled green bananas or steamed potato alongside. Break open one leaf packet and coat a little rice with the red sauce, and the aroma of dried shrimp and the stickiness of the root come together.
When planning a Cameroonian menu, cook it on a different day from sanga, where you taste the sweetness of leafy greens, and compare it with poulet moambé, which leans toward meat though also palm-based, and Central Africa's maboke (in Japanese), whose leaf-wrapped structure is close. If you want to use up your dendê oil, connecting to Brazil's moqueca baiana (in Japanese) shows another face of seafood and red oil.
Storage and reheating
In the refrigerator, put the packets and sauce together in an airtight container and finish within 2 days. To reheat, move to a small pot, add 2 to 3 tbsp water, and warm over low heat for about 8 minutes. Microwaving alone can leave the center cold, so heat at 600 W for 2 minutes, turn it over once, and heat 1 minute to 1 minute 30 seconds more.
It can be frozen, but the leaves soften and the texture of the root becomes slightly floury. If you freeze, divide into single portions; after thawing, warm over low heat in a pot, and use any packets that have broken down as a sauce over rice, so nothing is wasted.
Frequently asked questions
Can I make it with Chinese yam (nagaimo) instead of taro?
Yam alone has too much water and tends to run inside the leaf. If you use it, limit it to a portion of the taro, at most 20% of the total, and add a little starch. For a first try, taro alone is steadier.
Is it a different dish without cocoyam leaves?
The local aroma will differ, but if you keep the structure of wrapping the root in leaves, it holds together as a home version. Komatsuna leaves are rather small, so combining them with the outer leaves of bok choy or large spinach makes rolling easier.
Is it unsatisfying without dried shrimp?
The dried seafood aroma is weaker. To avoid shellfish, 1 tsp dried shiitake powder, a pinch of smoked salt and more scallions fill in the valley of aroma a little. It won't be the same, but it holds up as a dish of leaves and root.
I don't like dendê oil. Can I make it with ordinary oil?
You can, but the red aroma characteristic of ekpang nkukwo is weaker. If you don't like it, use only 1 tbsp dendê oil and replace the rest with rice bran oil. Checking the aroma with a small amount is easier to judge than going to zero from the start.
Can I wrap the packets the day before?
I don't recommend it. Grated taro releases water over time and loosens inside the leaf. If you must separate the work, finish blanching the leaves, crushing the dried shrimp and chopping the aromatics the day before, and do the grating and rolling of the taro on the day.
Local and overseas sources consulted
- Keng's Kitchen, “Ekwang - The Oroko Way”
- African Food Network, “Ekpang Nkwukwo”
- ConnectNigeria, “Recipe for Ekpang Nkukwo”
- African Journal of Culture, History, Religion and Traditions, “Preserving Indigenous Culinary Heritage through Multilingual Documentation”
- Oroko Cultural Association, “Diversity & Cultural Heritage”
