Isi Ewu Head With Chilled Red Grape Juice

 a serving of isi ewu with chilled Red Grape Juice

Dear Diary,
In case you are tired of your husband and friends visiting that isi ewu joint
every saturday evening, set them up with this, and scatter their plans.
I have not seen a Nigerian man who can resist Isi ewu. Right from
the North, to the southern Parts, Eastern Nigeria where this dish originated from,
and even Southeren Nigeria, they all enjoy Isi ewu and find it irresistible.

For the palm wine drinkers, there is nothing they enjoy like Isi ewu with
 a keg or mug of palm wine. For your Father In-law, just win him over to
your camp with Irresistible Isi-ewu.

Funny enough, after I tasted this delicacy, I officially joined the men and
 automatically became a great fan of Isi-ewu. To make matters worse,
a goat head is the cheapest part of it's whole body.
This goat head I prepared for my family was bought for just #500.
If you buy more than one head, it gets even cheaper.
Bigger heads are a bit  expensive though.
I do not know if it's the aroma of the spices or just the crunchy biscuit bones in
a goat head that make isi ewu  irresistible.

Don't you think that, if he can get Isi-ewu at home on week ends, he may not bother
 visiting that Isi ewu joint?

 boiling the goat head with onion, pepper,salt and wrapped brain

Ingredients for my isi ewu:

• 1Frozen goat head ( I had bought mine and kept in the freezer ahead of weekend. It is difficult to get them on weekends because restaurant owners clear everything).
• Spices ( Sorry about not knowing the names, that's why I put the pictures)
• Brain ( wrapped in a separate bag)
• 2 yellow pepper
• utazi
• potash/ akanwu (optional)
• 2 cubes knorr or maggi seasoning cubes
• 1 small sized onion
• salt to taste
• 1 table spoon palm oil
• water 

 the brain cooks in 12 minutes and is ready for pounding

Cooking Procedure for Isi-ewu:

1. The washed meat is put in a pot with salt, ground pepper. chopped onion, one seasoning cube and some water. Allowed to boil for 12 to 15 minutes before bringing out the cooked and hardened brain for pounding.
2. The roast and skinned nuts are  pounded before adding the brain, palm oil and a cube of maggi. Pound till smooth before adding to the boiling pot, stirr.
3. Pound the melon type ingredient too and add, stirr, check for salt, seasoning and water/thickness and allow to simmer for about 5 to 7 minutes before adding the utazi vegetable. stir, leave for just a minute or two and turn off the heat.
4. Serve with some chilled wine.

Enjoy, life has no duplicate jare!

 isi ewu spice nuts are being burnt for grinding

 the nuts skin roast well in the hot flame

 the nuts are well burnt

 they are allowed to cool off a little before removing the skin

 the burnt skin is removed with a sharp kitchen knife

 the nuts are pounded

 the boiled brain is pounded with palm oil, knorr seasoning cube and the ground nuts

 well pounded isi ewu ingredients 

 ingredients are added to the boiling pot of goat head

can someone please help us with the name  of this isi ewu and pepper soup spice, it is a thickener. I just pointed at it and bought without finding out the name. Now I don hook.

 it is pounded and added to the boiling pot

 utazi leaves are thinly chopped like okazi  (afang) leaves and added

 Enjoy lunch or dinner with isi ewu and chilled red grape juice or your sweet wine or even red wine

 Too good to waste even a piece of the isi ewu

 Some portion of the isi ewu has been eaten already

NOTE: Isi ewu cooks very fast once the ingredients are ready. It is best enjoyed with fingers, i.e.  if you can do without cutlery. I did not add potash to this dish.
This is not the season for utazi and red pepper. They are almost out of stock, however, you can replace them with hot leaf and red pepper. You will still  get that unique, great taste of Isi ewu.

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