Egusi (melon seeds)

Also called: egusi seeds, ground egusi, graines de melon, pistache moulue, egusi moulu

In Cameroon, "pistache" means egusi: the seeds of a plant from the gourd and melon family, nothing to do with the green pistachio nut. The seeds are shelled, dried and ground into a cream-coloured meal that thickens sauces as it cooks, giving them a mild, nutty taste and a slightly grainy texture.

Lumo has two recipes that use it: egusi pudding from the South-West, where the ground seeds are mixed with the other ingredients and steamed in parcels, and tomato pistache sauce from the Centre. For a sauce, mix the meal with a little water or stock before adding it, then cook over low heat and stir so it does not catch on the bottom. When you can, buy whole shelled seeds that are white and smell clean, not rancid, and grind them yourself in a mill or blender. The seeds are oily and go rancid, so keep them in a sealed jar somewhere cool, and keep ground egusi in the fridge or freezer unless you will use it soon.

African grocery shops abroad sell egusi whole or ground, under the names egusi or melon seeds. They are the same seeds used in Nigerian egusi soup. There is no substitute that gives the same result. The green pumpkin seeds sold in supermarkets have a different taste and do not thicken the same way.

Recipes with this ingredient

Often cooked with

Used in the cooking of