24. Colours of Africa: Food and Culture of Ghana

FOOD

Indians traveling to Africa can be seen carrying bags full of eatables. Just as well because though the land is so fertile (somebody has thoughtfully grown some mint in a soil filled tyre in the court-yard of the house we stayed in, so I continued to have my evening cup of fresh mint tea) that everything is just waiting to grow but apart from cocoa, cassava, plantains, yams and corn I didn’t see anything much being cultivated in Ghana. Arvind, our friend, says it is because, unlike in India, the people never harnessed animals for large scale farming and they are not rich enough to afford mechanised farming. The average Ghanaian is an extensive meat eater.  While driving down the highways you will see boys holding freshly slaughtered carcasses of small animals for sale which is called ‘bush-meat’. They are particularly fond of a small rabbit like animal called ‘grass-cutter’, hunting of which is permitted by the government. On the other hand fruits like oranges (mausambis), papayas (called pawpaw) and mangoes which grow in abundance, naturally, are left to rot. 

Oranges growing wild

No takers

Bright cocoa pods

The cocoa seed in a soft fleshy covering. Tastes delicious like custard apple

Inside the cocoa seed. Tastes like dark chocolate

Cashew on the tree

Cashew fruit

In all my years of visiting Goa I have never seen cashew growing like this or tasted the cashew fruit, which tastes like sweetened Feni! I learnt that Feni, in fact, is made from the fruit. When eating the fruit avoid the seed hanging below or your mouth will feel scalded for a long time - I was pre-warned.

Bush meat! Not a pleasant sight! antelopes, rabbits and grass-cutters are usual victims

We found most of the eatables we carried with us, available at the Indian store recently opened in Kumasi, a 100kms from where we were staying,(that did not prevent us from driving there at a drop of a hat), though at considerably higher prices because everything in Ghana is imported! So we were having chicken from Brazil, sugar from France, rice from Thailand, Pakistan or India etc. only the mineral water that we purchased for drinking, “Voltic”, is bottled in Accra.

Some Ghanaian Dishes: I had some Ghanaian dishes, which requires some getting used to, of course. The one dish I fancied and repeated was the Tilapia (fish) with rice.

Rice and fish (this one is not the tilapia). Can't go much wrong with that.

Rajeev being a vegetarian did not have many choices. Arvind, not very adventurous when it comes to food, stuck to grilled chicken and rice. 

Vegetables in sauce and rice, not often available

Mostly it was a veg fried rice.

Chicken and rice. Arvind's staple

Ghanaians have beans as a vegetarian source of proteins; we tried them once. The only beans we saw being served were cowpeas something akin to the ‘chowli’ we get in India.
Plantains (what we loosely call bananas in India) are a big part of the Ghanaian diet. They fry them and also roast them on the roadside. Both can be quite yummy. ‘Can be’ because the first time I had plantain wedges at the Linda Dor restaurant, enroute from Accra, it was something to die for. The next time, presuming that to be a standard, I ordered it while staying at the Hans Cottage at Cape Coast and found it too sweet and too oily.

Beans and fried plantains a little too oily

Linda Dor

Roasted plantains! yummy!

Ghanaians use a lot of oil in their cooking unless it is just boiled, like yams or fufu.

The fufu is the most famous dish in Ghana. It looks like the 'Idli', in India, but does not taste like it. It is made with cassava and banana blended together in an unique way. Cassava is the main source of carbohydrate for the Ghanaians, as they grow neither rice nor wheat. A lot of effort goes into the making of fufus and I had ample time to see the whole process at various times so I will string it together for you.

My experiment with the Fufu. Served with a wash bowl, liquid soap and scented hand lotion! I stuck to the spoon.

Fufu in a chicken broth, up close

Cassava (Tapioca) roots

Carefully peeled Cassava (no not by the teeth!)

Here's how its carried!

Put in the Grinder

The cassava flour collected

The cassava flour is pounded with banana, into a paste, with a very long handled pestle

Turning the paste often to make it smooth

Fufu paste

The Fufu paste is then boiled in water and served as a soft ball with a soup made of either palm-nut, fish or meat.

Peoples' love of the fufu is reflected even in their craft. I bought this ebony statuette of a fufu maker, as a salute to all fufu makers and eaters!

When we were not traveling or eating-out there was always Janet to make Indian food!

Janet making parathas!! Little Vivienne is always there for moral support!

While on Janet - this is how she ground the pepper. I tried; it takes a lot of strength to just rotate the wooden pestle in a ribbed earthen bowl and soundlessly grind the pepper.

Ghanians like their drink. Their local gin is called the Akpetishie. They also make a few wines from palm and millet, none of which we tasted. However we brought a locally made cocoa liqueur which turned out to be rather good. They also make a good beer called Star, which is quite popular too.

MUSIC & DANCE

Ghana appears to have a dance and a song for every occasion including funerals! The drums are of course a must.

People are very fond of music and dance. Every morning we woke up to Gospel music being loudly played by our neighbours starting 4.30 am, of course the rooster beat them to it mostly.

Here is a great video captured of the music and dance in a function organised alongside the street. 

Check out this video of Maoli and Baros playing two stringed dried gourds filled with seeds called the Televi Shaker, while they rap. Most of what Baros sang he made up impromptu, introducing us to his neighbour and giving details of his shop - number 128 in the Accra Craft Market. Needless to say I bought the Televi Shakers! But they are not as easy to play as they make it out to be :-< Anyway they make a good conversation piece as they are now displayed in our drawing room.

Links:

1) The Adinkra symbols of Ghana, West Africa

2) Bosumchwe or Bosumchwi Crater Lake

3) El Mina Slave Castle/Fort, Cape Coast, Ghana

4) History of Coinage and Currency in Ghana

5) Mole National Park, Northern Region, Ghana

6) Larabanga Mosque and the Mystic Stone, Ghana

7) Funerals are a celebration in Ghana  

8) A visit to Ghana

9) Oware: The ancient Board Game of Ghana