What We Cook/Eat in Ghana

I have been asked this question a few times and considering the culinary nature of most of our family’s blogs… I thought I should devote a post to what we cook here in Ghana….so, rice and beans! That is our number one meal. I usually make a simple tomato, onion and lime salsa with cilantro when I can get it. We have been making some yummy lentil and potato curry lately. We eat eggs and toast. Lots and lots of peanut butter on bananas and bread. We found a blueberry pancake mix that is heaven (actually Sara Jean was right, Oregon is Heaven…but my blueberry pancake mix is the closest thing I have these days.) Cornflakes and soymilk is a standard breakfast. Oatmeal and papaya – Thomas’ favorite that Seth and I love as well. Mashed potatoes using powdered milk with spinach. Fried rice with as many vegetables as we can get in it. We found flatbread and hummus and we usually put a green onion in the middle and wrap it up – sometimes we have plain yogurt with it but in general anything dairy is pricey here. We make soups on occasion with carrots and zucchini, onion and either rice or pasta. Vegetables: zucchini, tomato, carrots, cabbage and green beans (occasionally). Fruit: banana, papaya, pineapple (sadly mango is now out of season).
We eat a lot of rice and beans with sauce and salad (about a tablespoon of cabbage) from a little shop called Doris’. We like her stuff. We also have a fried chicken, fried rice and salad (about 3 tablespoons of cabbage smothered in mayo and ketchup - yum) that we like. And we have our fufu and soup place Happy Dish. WE also love two for one pizza on Tuesdays. Ten bucks for two large pizzas – yum!
I really miss only food shopping once or twice a week. Here they don’t really have big grocery stores, you have your bread shop and your banana lady. There is the fruit and veggie stand but I will only buy from them when a certain girl is working, the other lady is super rude and it is pretty hit and miss, you never know what they will have. Then there is the shop (actually it is a bar) where we buy water (sachets). There are three big super market type stores in Accra (just a reminder that there are 4 million people in Accra so these supermarkets are really only visited by upper-middle class Ghanaians and ex-pats.) – it is a pretty long trip to get to two of them and the other is a 25/30 minute walk away. So, I only go there occasionally. That is where we get cereal, yogurt, soymilk, pancake mix, hummus and flat bread and any other things that are more typically European or North American.

So that wraps up cooking, food and shopping for us here.