COME FOR A CHILLED "KUNU" DRINK....LOL

Kunu!!! Yeah kunu...lol. That is an hausa language. Do not ask me the English name because I do not know it. All I know I I love this drink. Lately, I find myself hungering for it and having a colleague who makes it perfectly is a great advantage. Okay, for those of you who might be hearing of this word "kunu" for the first time, let me help you understand what I am talking about.

You see, kunu is a very popular drink consumed by most Nigerians. It is majorly prepared by the northerners. It is a local non-alcoholic beverage. It is usually very thick and can serve as breakfast as it keeps the stomach filled up. It can also serve as an appetizer and I do sometimes use it to quench my thirst.

This morning while sipping a chilled bottle of kunu, it occured to me that I do not know the nutritional value of this drink neither do I know how to prepare it and so I marched down to the office of my colleague with pen and paper ready to learn and to teach. Kunu contains some very amazing ingredients with great nutritional value and a combination of them all makes kunu a highly nutritional drink.

The major ingredient in the preparation of kunu is the grain millet although sorghum and maize can also be used in it's preparation. Kunu prepared with millet is white in colour but that prepared with sorghum is slightly brown in colour. Millet contains lignin, sweet potatoes contains vitamin A, Ascorbic acid, copper, panthothenic acid and pyridoxinol (vit. B612), I am sure you are getting the picture I am trying to paint.

Okay so what do we need to make this drink? It's amazing to discover that they are very readily available and affordable ingredients. Depending on the quantity, the ingredients are :

1. Millet
2. Peeled sweet potatoes (optional)
3. Peeled garlic (medium size)
4. Cloves
5. Sugar
6. Water

HOW IS IT PREPARED?

1. wash the grain carefully into a neat bowl band soak in water for a period of 2days (48hours). This is to allow the grains ferment. Ensure the water is changed every 7 hours.

2. Once fermented, blend the millet with sweet potatoes and cloves until you have a smooth paste. While blending, add water for consistency.

3. Sieve the blended mixture into a bowl and allow to settle for another 7 hours until it sediments. Gently decant the clear liquids leaving behind the sediments.

4. Divide the last into two parts and boil water. Once the water is boiled, pout the hot water gently into one part of the mixture while stirring continuously to achieve consistency. Allow to cool a bit and then add the other part gradually still repeating the stirring process.

5. Allow to cool down and then filter to remove lager particles. Sweeten with sugar then refrigerate.
   

   
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Okay! Now that we are done with the preparation process, what are the benefits of this amazing drink?

1. Kunu drink is very good for diabetic patients as it has low sugar content.

2. Millet contains lignin which helps in fighting cancer. It also contains potassium and magnesium which are very good for treating heart diseases.

3. It serves as muscle relaxant for those who exercise a lot and also for women on menopause.

4. Are you pregnant and feeling nauseous? This drink is for you as it helps fight nausea and morning sickness. It helps improve your appetite and also increases blood supply to the Foetus. Are you a breast feeding mother? Then take it as it helps in breast milk production.

5. The ginger helps in relieving gastrointestinal irritation, lowers cholesterol levels and prevents the formation of blood clots.

6. Kunu is rich in fibre and so helps in bowel movement and prevents constipation thereby promoting a healthy digestive system.

7. The water content quenches thirst and prevents dehydration but I have mentioned that before.

8. The drink also helps in prevention of chronic inflammatory disease.
   

   
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   There you have it. What are you waiting for? Go treat yourself to some chilled kunu drink....ciao.