Moi Moi with Smoked Mackerel & Hard‑Boiled Eggs
A high‑protein Nigerian steamed bean pudding made from blended black‑eyed peas, studded with flaked smoked mackerel and hard‑boiled eggs — great for training fuel and meal‑prep.
AI image1 hr 35 min
start to finish
40 min
hands on
Some skill
difficulty
6
servings
Ingredients
For the batter
For seasoning
Fillings and garnish
Equipment
Contains fish, egg. Cooking for an allergy? Check the label on every packet you use — brands differ, and we can only tell you what the recipe calls for.
Roughly, per serving
550 kcal33g protein50g carbs22g fat
An estimate, not a lab analysis.
Method
If using dried unpeeled beans: place beans in a large bowl, cover with warm water and soak 30 minutes to loosen skins.
Rub the soaked beans between your hands (or between two towels) under running water to remove skins; drain and repeat until most skins are gone. If you have bought already‑peeled beans, skip this step.
Hard‑boil the eggs: place eggs in a small saucepan, cover with cold water, bring to a boil, then simmer 8 minutes; cool in cold water and peel.
Roughly chop the drained, peeled beans and transfer to a food processor or high‑speed blender.
Blend the beans to a smooth paste, stopping to scrape the sides; add 100–150 ml of the water in small amounts to help the blades move but keep the paste thick.
In the blender (no need to rinse), puree the red bell peppers, scotch bonnet and chopped onion with about 100 ml water until very smooth.
Combine the pepper purée with the bean paste in a large bowl and mix until uniform.
Stir in the vegetable oil, red palm oil (if using), salt and crushed bouillon cubes; add the remaining water only if the batter is too thick to pour/scoop. The batter should be like thick pancake batter — spoonable but not runny.
Flake the smoked mackerel, remove any bones, and fold most of it into the batter, reserving a little for garnish.
Grease your ramekins or prepare aluminium foil cups; place a halved hard‑boiled egg (flat side down) and a little reserved mackerel into the bottom of each container.
Spoon the batter into the prepared containers, filling to about three‑quarters to allow for expansion; smooth the tops.
Set a steamer or a large pot with a fitted rack and an inch of water over medium heat and bring to a rolling simmer.
Arrange the filled containers on the rack, cover tightly, and steam until set — a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean (about 40–45 minutes).
Turn off the heat and let the moi moi rest, covered, for 10 minutes before unmolding.
Invert each container onto a plate, garnish with reserved flaked mackerel and serve warm or chilled.
Worth knowing
- Short on time: use 3 cans (15 oz / 425 g each) of drained black‑eyed peas (about 900 g drained) — blend directly but reduce added water to 100–150 ml because canned beans already have moisture.
- To peel beans quickly: after soaking, place beans and water in a blender and pulse briefly to loosen skins; pour into a bowl and skim skins off the surface, then rinse and drain.
- For a very smooth texture, press the blended batter through a fine mesh sieve before adding oil and seasonings.
- No steamer? Stand a metal rack or small colander inside a large pot, add boiling water up to the rack, cover tightly and steam as directed. You can also bake the filled ramekins in a 350°F (180°C) oven for 45–55 minutes.
- Moi moi freezes well. Cool completely, wrap or transfer to freezer‑safe containers, and freeze up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat by steaming for 10–15 minutes.
Make it yours
Cooking without dairy, without an oven, for someone who won't touch chilli, or for six instead of four? Have the recipe rewritten around it — quantities, steps and all.
Gluten-freeDairy-freePescatarianHigh proteinMeal prep
More Nigerian cooking
An original Restaurant Pro recipe — our own composition in the idiom of Nigerian cooking, not any restaurant's recipe. Written to be gluten-free and dairy-free and pescatarian as listed.