Soups & Stews

Gbegiri

Name: Gbegiri
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 75 min
Total time: 115 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Nigerian
Ingredients: 250 g dried brown beans or black-eyed peas (sorted); 1.2 litres water (for cooking, plus water for soaking and peeling); 400 ml additional hot water (as needed); 100 g onion (finely chopped); 45 ml red palm oil; 1 tbsp ground dried crayfish (optional); 1 tbsp iru (optional; mashed); 0.25 tsp ground hot pepper (or to taste); 0.5 tsp fine salt (plus more to taste); 1 small stock cube (optional; check salt and allergens)

Peeled beans become a velvety golden soup enriched with red palm oil and pepper. Gbegiri shows a different side of the Nigerian bean repertoire: beans are softened and reduced to a smooth soup rather than left whole or fried. Its connection with Yoruba cooking is documented by both NICO and Nigerian recipe writers. It is frequently served together with ewedu, pepper stew, and amala. Cultural context: A Yoruba soup with regional and household variations; this meat-free base can accompany separately prepared meat or fish stew.

Smooth golden gbegiri with a red stew and meat topping

Gbègìrì_soup.jpg by Bamjos, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 · CC BY-SA 4.0

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25 minPreparation

75 minCooking

6Servings

Allow 15 additional minutes for resting / soaking. Total: 115 minutes.

What you’ll need

6 servings

Let’s get cooking

1
Cover the beans with cool water for 15 minutes. Rub between your palms to loosen the skins, then rinse repeatedly, pouring floating skins through a sieve. Keep the peeled beans.
2
Put the beans, onion, and 1.2 litres water in a deep pot. Bring to a boil, then simmer partly covered for 50–65 minutes until the beans collapse when pressed. Add hot water as necessary to keep them submerged.
3
Remove from the heat and blend with an immersion blender. Alternatively, press the beans and cooking liquid through a sieve; do not seal boiling liquid in a countertop blender.
4
Return the smooth mixture to low heat. Stir in the palm oil, pepper, salt, and optional crayfish, iru, and stock cube.
5
Simmer gently for 8–10 minutes, stirring along the bottom. Add enough reserved water for a pourable soup; it will become thicker as it stands.
6
Taste the cooked soup, adjust salt, and serve as six small accompanying portions.

A little kitchen wisdom

The soaking time is for loosening skins, not fermentation. Old beans may take longer than the stated cooking time. Go by softness before blending. Timing: active preparation 25 min; cooking 75 min; additional passive time 15 min; conservative planning allowance 115 min. Some stages may overlap. For Recipe.ng display, prep_minutes includes the additional passive time; it is not all hands-on work. Recipe status: Research draft; not kitchen-tested. Allergens and checks: Crustacean shellfish if crayfish is used; Check stock cube for celery, soy, wheat, milk, or other declared allergens

Recipe notes & sources

Research draft; not kitchen-tested

Also known as: Yoruba bean soup

A Yoruba soup with regional and household variations; this meat-free base can accompany separately prepared meat or fish stew.

Allergens: Crustacean shellfish if crayfish is used, Check stock cube for celery, soy, wheat, milk, or other declared allergens