GARDEN EGG SAUCE

By Sunmonu Halimat Mausi

Garden egg is a fruit from the Solanaceae Family in order Aubergine. It is a bitter yet spongy fruit that a lot of people enjoy raw but it is also a good sauce ingredient. It is very nutritious.

For this sauce, you can make use of any type of garden egg available to you. You can use the purple garden egg “aubergine”, or the white and green garden eggs. According to research, the raw garden egg is a very good source of dietary fiber, manganese, potassium, copper, and thiamin (vitamin B1). It is also a good source of vitamin B6, folate, magnesium, and niacin. It is also effective in weight loss, and lowering blood cholesterol and eye pressure in glaucoma. Being a member of the vegetable family, it contains nutrients that include beta carotene, vitamins B6 and E, folate, calcium, iron, and magnesium fiber. The garden egg is also regarded as a brain food because it contains the anthocyanin phytonutrient found in its skin and Nasunin, a potent antioxidant and free radical scavenger that has been proven to protect cell membranes from damage. This is one of the many reasons why it’s recommended to make the sauce without removing the skin.

Ingredients:

• Garden eggs (either purple “aubergine”, white or green )

• Palm oil

• Smoked fish

• Ground pepper (either chili, scotch bonnet, etc.)

•  Iru (rinsed) or okpei

• Onion

• Crayfish

• Salt to taste

Directions:

Step 1: Remove the green stalk from the garden eggs and rinse. In a medium-sized pot, boil the garden eggs whole for about 10 minutes till soft. This is done to soften it just enough to make blending easier. Chop the boiled garden eggs into smaller pieces and blend roughly with a little water. Some people like it smooth while others like it chunky. If you are not using a blender, you could pound the garden eggs into a smooth paste. To do this, boil the garden eggs further till the flesh swells and pops out of the skin. Peel the skin off and pound till smooth – Set this aside.

Step 2: Heat the oil in a small-sized empty pot till it loosens up a little. Add the chopped onion and Iru. Stir fry for about 5 minutes.

Step 3: Gently pour the ground garden eggs, smoked fish, crayfish, crushed seasoning, pepper, and salt into the pot. Stir and leave to cook for about 10-15 minutes before turning off the burner.

Serve with Boiled, roasted, or fried yam or plantain.