The month of February is ALL about FOOD!! This month we are sharing images and descriptions of our favorite foods in Ghana. "Foods in Ghana" do not need to be Ghanaian foods, only our favorites, so you're sure to see some foods you've never seen (or tasted), as well as some favorites from back in the States. One thing is for sure, it's not hard to find tasty food in Ghana!
UPPER WEST REGION
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H.K.: “Yam fufu [a dish made from pounded boiled yam] from the north [Ghana] is far more enjoyable than the yam and plantain fufu from the south. This yam fufu is served in groundnut [peanut] soup. Yum! It’s sooo good!! Like a creamy, thick mashed potato!”
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Lia P.: “Chicken and rice is my food in Ghana! Five Ghana [$1.25 US dollars] gets you a portion enough for 2 meals, and I add pear [avocado] to every meal!” |
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Dean S.: “TZ [ tou zefi – Ghana corn flour] with slimy soup; not my total favorite, but the best school food! LOL.” |
Northern Region:
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John M.: “My friend, Gifty, dishing me out a jar of groundnut paste [peanut butter] in Yendi! I eat copious amounts of this this delicious nectar every week as a source of protein in my carbohydrate-dominated diet. ”
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| Spence W.: "In some areas of northern Ghana, a sweet and sour (and slightly alcoholic) drink known as pito is considered a food. Made from fermented sorghum, it’s a source of income for many women in Saboa District.” Top left: Spence W. and John M. share some pito. Top right: Pito served in a calabash (vessel made of dried gourd). Bottom: A kitchen where pito is being cooked/prepared. |
Brong Ahafo Region:
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| Charlotte C.: "I have a lot of favorite foods in Ghana, but the one I eat most often is called ‘rice and stew.’ It is white rice with a red sauce made from palm oil, ground fish, tomatoes, and a variety of spices. It is typically topped with any variety of toppings, commonly including spaghetti, a hot sauce called shitto, chopped cabbage, onion, and hard boiled eggs. There is one lady who sells the best stew in town every day at school for any amount you would like. You can get a serving the size of your fist for 50 peswas (about $0.12 US [that’s 12 cents!]).” Top: Charlotte C.’s local rice and stew stand. Bottom: Close-up of the ingredients used to prepare and serve rice and stew. |
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Billy N.: “Apples reign supreme in my hometown in New England – from apple crisps, to bobbing for apples, and going apple picking – and I have many fond memories of that crispy fruit.
However, here in Ghana, oranges come in abundance and the teachers at school take turns buying them by the dozen for each other, so I'm finding a new love for oranges here. :)” |
VOLTA REGION:
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Jake B.: “Banku and tilapia [smoked fish]. [Banku] is a corn and cassava [dough] mixture, tilapia, onions, peppers, and peppe [a Ghanaian pepper sauce].”
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Brenda G.: “My favorite Ghanaian dish is fufu with light soup, and either smoked Fulani cheese, chicken, or goat. Fufu, like most Ghanaian dishes, is eaten with your fingers, right hand only, since Ghanaians, like much of Africa and the Middle East, assume your left hand is used for other things. Little do they know! But, cultural considerations aside, the soup and fufu are served hot, so you find yourself blowing your fingers for the first few bites. This is usually, but not always, from a shared communal bowl. Fufu is made from steamed plantain and cassava, pounded in a large mortar, and equally large pestle [pictured above], called a fufu pounder. Light soup is Ghana’s version of chicken soup. You’ll have to research a recipe, because my [internet] connection with the outside world is tenuous at best. If you are in the Bronx or LA, you can find a Ghanaian restaurant. Until then, love to all you good cooks out there.”
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| David R.: “Goat [meat] in groundnut [peanut] soup, with [not pictured]. is my favorite Ghanaian food; it is not commonly eaten in the Southern Volta, so when I find it, it’s a treat. The chop bar [like a restaurant] in town only has it during the weekends [for] 7-8 Ghana cedi [about $1.75 – 2.00].” |
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| Winnie W.: “Some staples in Ghana, [but as pictured] doesn’t really have a specific name. Groundnuts (10 Ghana cedis [$2.50 US dollars]), tomatoes, oil, goat meat (12 cedi/pound [$3.00 US]), onions (1 cedi [$0.25 US]), garlic (1 cedi), ginger (1 cedi), ripe plantain (5 cedi for 5 plantains [$1.25 US]), paprika/hot pepper, and salt.” |
EASTERN REGION:
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Ms. B: “This is my waakye[wah-chay] stand. Wonderful ladies that sell at the nearby sports events. For 3 Ghana [$0.75 US], I can get enough beans and rice to feed 2 people. Second portion usually goes to the first student I see. I usually get it with a bit of chicken. Served with tomato based stew and black peppeh sauce.” Left: The waakye stand from a distance. Right: Close up of the ingredients used in the preparation and serving of waakye.
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Brittany J.: Top: “Queen cake.” Bottom: “Red-red is a popular dish in Ghana, and it is normally made vegetarian. Red-red is made from beans, and it gets the red color from the red palm oil [made from the kernels (fruits) of the palm tree].
Do you want to make these tasty dishes at home?:
Top: “Ingredients: 4 large eggs, 200 g (1 cup [c]) granulated sugar, 1 tsp pure vanilla extract, ½ tsp butterscotch flavor, 260 g (2 c) all purpose flour, 1 tsp baking powder, ½ tsp salt, the zest of 1 lemon, ½ c evaporated milk, 170 g (3/4 c) unsalted butter, and ¾ c raisins/sultanas/currants.”
Bottom: "Ingredients: 250 g dry black eyed beans, 2.5 c palm oil (the red type), 4 red onions (medium size), 1 small box [or can] tomato paste, 1 – 2 red chilis, 2 – 3 cm fresh ginger, 3 cloves garlic, 5 tomatoes, 2 – 3 dl water, 2 – 3 ts salt, pinch of sugar.”
Kyle L.: “This is a snapshot of my top 2 favorite meals in Ghana. What do they share in common? My favorite beer in Ghana, Castle Milk Stout.” Top: “Castle Milk Stout, the only dark beer in Ghana.” Bottom left: “Indomie. An instant noodle dish (not unlike Ramen instant noodles in the States) to which I add an egg, green peppers, a small onion, and a tomato. It’s amazing.” Bottom right: “Yam Fufu (my favorite kind of fufu – it’s less sticky than the cassava and plantain fufu) in groundnut (peanut) soup with smoked and fresh fish. My friend Amos (a Ghanaian) eats the smoked fish, and I eat the fresh fish (called ‘salmon’ here in Ghana).”
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| Kyle L.: "I live in a bungalow on the campus of the senior high school where I teach and, as a perk, I get lunch and dinner each day. These are some of my favorite ‘school lunches/dinners.’” Top left: “This is a stew (which in Ghana means a thick soup more like a sauce) made with a green leafy vegetable called kontomeri (con-too-mury). It is usually served with rice.” Top right: “This is rice and red stew with fish (usually sardines, herring or smoked fish). It’s just the right amount of spicy, and I like it best with sardines or herring.” Bottom: “Kenkey (kin-kay; a corn dough wrapped in corn husks, and boiled), here served with a red stew and fish. Sometimes it is also served with peppe, a spicy red sauce made of mortared onion, tomato, and garlic, with the consistency of a well-pureed salsa.” |
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| Kyle L.: "These are some of my favorite breakfast creations since I’ve been in Ghana.” Top: “Eggs and toast and pawpaw. I scramble some eggs with okra, tomatoes, and onions, toast some bread in a skillet, and add them together with my second favorite fruit in Ghana, Pawpaw (mango is my first favorite fruit).” Middle left: “French toast with cinnamon and sugar, and a cup of real, French pressed coffee (compliments of my aunt and uncle who mailed the coffee and French press to me). It’s difficult to find any coffee other than instant in Ghana.” Middle right: “French toast, scrambled eggs, and bananas (my third favorite fruit in Ghana).” Bottom: “Egg sandwich (these are very common in Ghana – and delicious), plus fried ripe plantains (when they are ripe they are sweet!). Here they look a little reddish because I added some chili powder for a kick.” |
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| Kyle L.: "These are some dishes I concocted with some odds and ends around my house.” Left: “Vegetable soup with rice. Here I used a packet of vegetable soup mix plus tomatoes, onions, kontomeri, okra, green peppers, and rice.” Right: “Stew (like a goulash) with kontomeri, okra, green pepper, tomato, tomato sauce, garlic, sardines, and rice. Only thing missing was the kitchen sink, but as I don’t have running water here, I didn’t have the sink to throw in.” |
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Stephanie R.: “[Grilled chicken sandwich] from Custom Burgers in Accra [the capital]. Natural chicken, grilled pineapple, jalapeño, grilled onion, and chipoltle sauce. Thirty-five Ghana cedi [$8.75 US].”
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