Buka Classic · Yam-Flour Swallow
Amala with Gbegiri and Ewedu
Photo: Bukky658 / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Amala's deep brown-black color comes purely from the yam flour itself being sun-dried, soaked, and slow-roasted before grinding — no seasoning or dye is added.
Amala is a smooth, dark swallow made from roasted yam flour (elubo) stirred into a stretchy dough, served with two soups at once: gbegiri, a puréed bean soup, and ewedu, a slippery jute-leaf soup. Lagos buka canteens serve it with assorted meat and a spicy pepper stew.
Why it's made this way: The combination, which Yoruba diners call 'abula,' spread from Ibadan and Oyo into Lagos's buka eatery culture as an affordable, filling lunch for traders and office workers.
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Photo credits.