Edo Black Soup

1. Wash the goat meat and cut it into bite-sized pieces, then season with half the chopped onion, one stock cube and a little salt. Boil with just enough water to cover until tender, about 40 to 45 minutes, keeping the cooking stock in the pot.
2. Clean the snails by rubbing them with salt and lime or alum to remove the slime, rinse very well, then slice them. Debone and flake the dried fish and rinse it to remove grit.
3. Wash the bitter leaf in several changes of water, squeezing repeatedly until most of the bitterness is gone but a pleasant trace remains, then chop it finely along with the scent leaves.
4. Blend the habanero peppers with the remaining onion. Char a small portion of the bitter and scent leaves in a dry pan, then grind or blend them with a little stock into the dark paste that gives the soup its characteristic black color.
5. Add the snails, flaked dried fish, blended pepper, ground crayfish, palm oil and the remaining stock cubes to the pot of goat meat and its stock, top up with hot water to a soupy consistency, and simmer for 15 minutes.
6. Stir in the dark leaf paste and the remaining chopped bitter and scent leaves, then simmer gently for another 10 minutes until everything is well combined and the soup has darkened.
7. Taste and adjust the salt and heat, ensure the snails and meat are fully tender, then serve hot with pounded yam or fufu.

You'll use: Pan · Large pot · Saucepan · Blender