Abacha, also known as African Salad, is a highly nutritious and sumptuous delicacy native to the Igbos in the South-Eastern part of Nigeria.
It is usually served at Igbo traditional gatherings and can be enjoyed as a snack, dessert, appetizer or full meal any day.
It is often prepared with dried shredded cassava which is usually soaked in water to soften it a bit. The dried shredded cassava is gotten from cassava tubers which are sliced with a grater or knife into small pieces, boiled and sun-dried.
Abacha is usually prepared with ugba (oil bean) and garnished with chopped garden egg leaves, utazi, sliced onions, and smoked fish, fried fish, kanda or stockfish.
The assortment of green vegetables, ugba and various ingredients make Abacha a balanced meal and recommended for healthy living.
Cassava is gluten-free, high in carbohydrates and calories due to the high sucrose content. It also is rich in B-complex nutrients and has low levels of fats.
The green vegetables are rich sources of minerals, beta-carotene, ascorbic acid, and calcium. It also has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Garden egg leaves are great for cellular regeneration and help to restore dead cells.
Ugba is rich in protein as well as the fish and meat.
Obviously, African salad has excellent dietary advantages.
Source: http://curiousgang.com