Have you noticed how moin moin tastes sweeter when made with leaves than with nylon? Well, here's how you can make one
Something very unique about moin moin wrapped in leaves (moin moin elewe) is the taste.
Cooking moin moin in either Uma leaves or banana leaves tend to add a special flavour to the food unlike when you use nylon or foils.
Growing up, I thought using leaves was too crude and difficult to use. It actually isn't. Apparently, there's no special ingredient to be included in this recipe asides from the leaves itself.
playMoin moin made with leaves (Rants by Gbemi)
So after you must have ground the beans and pepper mixture, add all the necessary spices, seasonings and some vegetable oil (never forget to add this ingredient except you want your moin moin sticking to the leaves) to the paste. Stir properly so that you have a homogenous mixture. We're ready to wrap our moin moin with the leaves.
1. Uma leaves usually comes with a stem. So, cut off the stem of the leaves and set it aside. We'd be needing this to cook.
playCut the stem off the leaves (Foodstantly)
2. Add some salt in a bowl of water. Soak both the leaves and the stem in it for 3-minutes.
3. With a soft sponge, wash the leaves with the salt water (Do not add soap). This is to get rid of debris and germs that might be hiding in the leaves.
playWash the leaves with salt water to get rid of germs and debris (Wives connection)
4. Take two leaves, placing one on the other and flip it in a way that the spine is facing you.
NB; We're using two leaves to give the moin moin paste a firm support and avoid spillage.
5. Make a cone shape or a V-shape with the leaves. You should have something that looks like a funnel when done with this.
playFold the leaves to form a v shape or a cone (Wives connection)
6. Close up the tiny edge of the cone/funnel so that the moin moin paste doesn't easily flow out from the leaves.
7. Now, pour a cup or a two of the moin moin paste into the leaves. Make sure you don't fill up the leaves to the brim. You want to leave some space to close up the moin moin.
playPour the moin moin paste into the leaves. Be careful not to fill it to the brim (Naija Chef)
8. Seal up the open part by folding the leaves neatly and place in the pot ready to cook.
playSeal the open part by carefully folding the open part of the leaves (Gourmet fitness)
Note: Just before you place the moin moin in the pot, arrange the Uma stems at the bottom of the pot, spread a leave or two on it, arrange the moin moin in the pot and add some water.
Now we're ready to cook