Ghana is a sub-Saharan country on the West African coast. Visitors and expats alike celebrate its distinctly vibrant, colorful culture around the world.
The region’s growing popularity has also put Ghanaian food on the map, and more and more people want to try out these unique local delicacies.
Therefore, we at Remitly decided to put together this quick guide to traditional Ghanaian cuisine. It’s the latest entry in our series exploring national dishes from every country.
12 Ghanaian dishes you have to try
Here are some of Ghana’s most iconic dishes:
Jollof rice
Jollof rice is a popular dish across West Africa, especially in Ghana and neighboring Nigeria.
Which iteration tastes better is a big subject of debate but depends on personal preference.
However, unlike the Nigerian version, Ghanaian-style jollof fried rice calls for perfumed Thai jasmine rice, which gives the dish a unique smell and taste.
It also uses more spices, giving the traditional flavor profile a delicious twist:
- Traditional jollof rice spices include ground tomato, tomato paste, curry powder, stock, white pepper, bay leaves, and thyme.
- Additional spices, including garlic, ginger, rosemary, nutmeg, anise, and mixed vegetables.
When you order jollof rice in Ghana, you’ll likely receive it with side dishes like meat, fried fish, kelewele (fried plantains), or shito, a hot pepper sauce.
Whether on Independence Day or more everyday occasions, this Ghanaian delicacy takes center stage.
Jollof rice gets its name from the ancient African Wolof—or Jolof—Empire, which is now part of modern-day Senegal. Learn more about Ghana’s jollof rice and try our tried-and-tested recipe here.
Banku
Banku is a sour swallow—a type of dish that requires little chewing—from the Ga-Adangbe people, who occupy the Accra Plains and coastlands.
It is one of Ghana’s staple foods and still follows age-old preparation methods today. In fact, Ghanaians love this popular dish so much that some have coined the country “Banku Nation.”
Banku begins with fermenting cornmeal and cassava dough. White corn meal and cassava is cooked in water until the mixture becomes a smooth, pale paste, which is then formed into single-serve balls.
Okro soup traditionally accompanies banku, but it also goes well with grilled fish, black pepper sauce, or palm nut soup.
What the name means: Banku comes from the Ga-Adangbe phrase “ba mi ku,” where “ba” means “leaf” and “ku” is “swallow food.” Together, the phrase roughly translates to “swallows stored in leaves.”
Kenkey
Another swallow, kenkey is one of Ghana’s staple foods. It’s made using ground and fermented corn flour that’s kneaded into a dough.
After fermenting for another four days to a week, cook the corn dough partly; you’ll end up with soft corn dumplings wrapped in agobo (corn husks) that perfectly accompany soups, stews, or grilled tilapia.
Alternatively, mash kenkey with milk, sugar, and groundnuts and serve it cold.
Okro stew
Okra is known as okro throughout West Africa. Spicy and chunky, okro stew is the perfect accompaniment for banku.
The hearty okra soup dish starts with a fragrant base that combines tomatoes, onions, red palm oil and spices like ginger, garlic, and peppers to taste.
How you prepare the okra determines the stew’s final consistency: steaming the vegetable before adding it to the tomato sauce base makes the stew thick and viscous.
On the other hand, avoiding any pre-cooking results in a more soup-like consistency.
Elevate the dish by adding any meat except chicken, which is rarely used, or top it off with seafood like salmon, crab or lobster tail.
Make your own with this healthy, delicious okro stew recipe.
Shito
Shito is a potent, hot pepper sauce used as a condiment in Ghanaian cuisine. This dark-colored side, dip, or dressing perfectly balances sweet and spicy—and it’s bursting with a rich umami taste.
Shito sauce is easy to make:
It combines dried fish, prawns, and other crustaceans with garlic, ginger, pepper, various spices, and vegetable oil. It’s a popular part of many meals and has become synonymous with Ghanaian cooking in recent years.
What the name means: Shito literally means “black pepper” in the Ga language.
Waakye
Waakye originates from the Hausa people in northern Ghana. Its name comes from the phrase “shinkafa da wake” which means “rice and beans” in the Hausa language.
It’s one of the simplest meals in traditional Ghanaian cuisine, but it packs lots of history and flavor.
Many believe that waakye inspired the rice and beans dishes commonly found across the Caribbean, the American South, and South America.
Classic waakye recipes also use black-eyed peas or cowpeas cooked with limestone and dried sorghum or millet stalk leaves. These unusual ingredients give the delicacy a unique taste, but you can use baking soda if there’s no limestone handy!
Waakye is a popular street food and breakfast or lunch option. It’s typically served wrapped in banana leaf and pairs well with stews and side dishes like shito, gari, fried or ripe plantain, or boiled eggs.
Red red
Red red is one of Ghana’s most beloved traditional foods. To make it, just stew cowpeas or black-eyed beans in a savory chili, onion, and tomato sauce. This delicious recipe also incorporates red palm oil (dende).
Naturally gluten-free, it’s suitable for vegans and vegetarians too.
Red red is commonly served with a side dish of roasted or fried plantain and a gari garnish.
Grilled tilapia
Tilapia is a common type of fish in West Africa. Cooked over an open charcoal BBQ, classic, Ghana-style grilled tilapia will leave you salivating.
After cleaning the fish, you can choose to marinate it or prepare it fresh. Charcoal briquettes give the tilapia a distinctive flavor that pairs well with banku, kenkey, fried yam, and other side dishes. Try it yourself with this classic grilled tilapia fish recipe.
Tuo zaafi
Tuo zaafi is among the most well-known traditional foods from northern Ghana. The main component of the dish is a soft, stretchy fermented millet and corn dough. However, classic tuo zaafi consists of two other key elements:
- Ayoyo soup, which is a light soup made from dried okra leaves
- Meats such as beef, goat, or dawadawa (smoked herring chunks)
Several variations of the recipe are suitable for vegetarians. However, all use a blend of natural spices while preparing tuo zaafi.
What the name means: Tuo zaafi is a combination of the Hausa words “tuo,” which means “stirring” or “paddling,” and ”zaafi,” which means “hot.”
Kontomire stew
Kontomire is a stew made from cocoyam leaves, which are literally called kontomire in the ancient Akan language. Ghanaians also know kontomire as palava stew, and it incorporates dried fish, peppers, fresh tomatoes, and palm oil to make a tasty dish.
Kontomire and ampesi (boiled yam or plantain) is a ubiquitous combination, but the stew also goes well with steamed or fried rice, boiled eggs, or egusi (squash, gourd, or melon seeds).
Suya
Suya are decadent Ghanaian kebabs most commonly eaten as street food. The immensely popular dish is made from smoked meat seasoned with garlic, peppers, and one particularly important ingredient: groundnut.
This adds an unmistakably authentic African taste that’s further enhanced by finishing off the suya recipe on a charcoal BBQ or in an oven.
Garden egg stew
Garden egg stew is a long-time Ghanaian favorite. It incorporates garden eggs—a type of African eggplant known as “nyadua” in the Twi language—along with salmon, smoked herring, and koobi (dried and salted tilapia).
However, you can easily adjust this garden egg stew recipe in terms of taste and preference.
More favorites from Ghana
There are several other popular Ghanaian dishes to explore:
- Gari or garri is a flour made from fresh, starchy cassava roots or rice, maize, guinea corn, millet, yam, or plantain.
- Ghanaian fufu is prepared by pounding yam—or cassava and unripe plantains—into a paste, which is then molded into balls by hand.
- Koko is a millet porridge drink originating from the Hausa people of Ghana. It’s eaten as part of a traditional Ghanaian breakfast.
- Omo tuo are rice balls made from one of Ghana’s staple foods and served with nkate nkwan (groundnut soup).
- Peanut butter soup, also known as groundnut stew, combines tomatoes, peanut butter, and black-eyed beans to create a light, flavorful soup.
The story of Ghana’s traditional foods
Many Ghanaian dishes are based on key local staple foods such as cassava, corn, egusi, and plantains, among others.
However, colonial influences also introduced new food items in Ghana. For instance, locals today consume rye bread in every part of the country, mostly due to British settlers and the French and German presence in neighboring countries.
Exploring traditional Ghanaian food in the U.S.
Are you a food enthusiast looking for new flavors, or an expat working abroad who’s just reminiscing about home? If you live in the U.S., then you’re in luck—America has well-established communities of migrants from West Africa, and you’ll find your place quickly.
Specifically, Maryland, New York, and California host several restaurants ranked among the best for West African food eateries countrywide.
However, you can also find some great options in Chicago, Kansas, Texas, and Ohio, among others.
More things to know about Ghana
Ghana’s official language is English, but this multicultural country has over 80 indigenous ethnic groups and languages.
Most people in the north speak Dagbani, while Akan is more widespread in the southern and eastern regions.
The official currency is the Ghanaian cedi, and mobile money transfer is the easiest way to send and receive money here.
Read more: Moving to Ghana in 2024
FAQ
What is traditional African food like?
Traditional African food is as diverse as the continent’s peoples, tribes, and ethnic groups.
Each community uses its own ingredients, cooking techniques, and preparation methods, making African food a broad spectrum of tastes and flavors.
What is Ghana’s national dish?
Due to various factors, there is currently no consensus on what Ghana’s national dish is.
However, staple foods like fufu, banku, suya, and waakye are some of the most notable and widespread.
What is a traditional breakfast in Ghana?
Ghana doesn’t follow a set breakfast menu, but traditional breakfast food options include waakye, a rice and beans dish, and koko, a millet porridge drink.
What is the difference between fufu and tuo zaafi?
The main difference lies in their ingredients.
Fufu is made from pounded cassava, yam or unripe plantains. Meanwhile, tuo zaafi is made from a fermented millet and corn dough.
What ingredients are commonly used in Ghanaian cooking?
What sets Ghanaian cuisine apart is its emphasis on palm oil, spices, and fresh vegetables only available locally such as egusi, which are seeds from squash, gourd, or melon plants.
Why should you try Ghanaian cuisine?
Ghanaian cuisine is different and unique, and each dish will expose you to distinct flavor profiles.
If you’re ready for a new food adventure, or just longing for familiar tastes from your homeland, trying Ghanaian food is a must.