One of the most enjoyable aspects of visiting a new country is trying out its local cuisine. I always make a point of eating food I’ve never had before when I get the opportunity to, even back home in Nigeria. I’m not about to name all the weird things I’ve eaten in this post but just so you get to know me better, I’ve eaten frog legs and ostrich meat.

On my first night in Ghana, we tried Ghana Jollof. It’s definitely not similar in taste to Naija Jollof. I’m not about to start any wars, so I’m just going to move on.

On my second day, I visited Chez Clarrise Restaurant, one of the most popular restaurants in Osu. We waited for a long time to be served, until we went inside to place our own orders. To be fair, it was Friday evening, and it was really busy.  I ordered Attieke and grilled tilapia fish.

Attieke is a dish made with grated fermented cassava, which is then steamed. It’s originally an Ivorian dish, but it’s also quite popular in Ghana. It’s really similar in look to couscous, but it’s far from it in taste. Attieke is pretty much Eba (cassava dough; a very popular Nigerian dish) in little pieces, and for someone who hadn’t eaten Eba in years, I couldn’t eat it halfway. On the other hand, the grilled tilapia fish was so good, I devoured all of mine and ate the other half of my sister’s.

On my third day in Accra, we visited Buka, a restaurant that most Nigerians frequent when they are in the city. I had been to Buka before with my family, but I ate Nigerian food. It was a Saturday, and just a few minutes after their opening hour, but it was already packed. Once we found seats, we got the menu and placed our orders. This was a time of exploration, so I ordered Banku and palm nut soup.

Banku is a mixture of cassava dough, corn dough, salt and water. It tasted a bit like Fufu, and again, I didn’t like it very much, but my sister devoured it. The Palmnut soup, on the other hand, was so good I almost ate it all, even though the portion can feed three people. It was remarkably similar in taste to Gbegiri, a Nigerian soup made with beans.

One of my sisters ordered Waakye, which I believe is a safe meal for anyone who isn’t very adventurous. No shade meant Dee 😊

Besides these meals, we also ate at the hotel and the weddings I originally travelled to Accra for, and I fell in love with shito. Shito is a hot black pepper sauce that makes everything taste better. I loved it so much, I’m going to learn to make it.

Do you like to explore new food when you visit new places?

Which of these meals are you trying when you visit Ghana?

Thanks for reading.

Mariam Shittu