Abak Atama is a delicious soup popular in southern Nigeria, particularly amongst the Ibibios of Akwa Ibom State. Its name is derived from the two dominant ingredients used in making the soup; the palm kernel fruit extract (Abak) and Atama leaves.
Wash your palm fruits and cook till it is very soft. Put in a mortar and carefully pound till the chaff is totally removed from the nuts. Be very careful while pounding so you don’t end up breaking the nuts into the extract. When all the chaff are removed from the nuts, wash with warm water to extract the juice or oil. Avoid adding too much water during this process. Use a sieve to separate the oil from the chaff and nuts. Put the oil in a pot and set aside.
Wash all the meat and Pomo thoroughly. Season with onion, pepper, garlic, salt, and any seasoning cube of your choice. Add a little water and allow to cook.
Add the stock fish head when the meat is almost cooked and cook till it is soft.
Wash the Atama leaves and pound them till all the leaves are well pounded.
Put the palm fruit extract on fire. Leave it to boil to remove excess moisture/water.
Add the cooked meat, washed dry catfish, meat stock, periwinkle, crayfish, pepper, seasoning cubes and Uyayak. Stir and allow to simmer.
Next, add the Atama leaves and boil without stirring for 10mins.
Stir, add salt to taste.
Allow to simmer for a few minutes until the soup becomes slightly thick.
Your Abak Atama soup is ready. Serve and enjoy.
The Abak Atama soup can be enjoyed with Garri, Pounded yam, Fufu or Amala.