Ghana boasts a wide selection of international restaurants, particularly in the “Osu” part of Accra. However, the adventurous traveler may want to try local dishes served in the local “chop bars” and street stands. If you don’t know where to begin, look where people stop and rest. This is what we did and look at some of the places we found:
In Osu we found the “Peace Palace” chop bar on a dirt road across from Bata on 6th street.
On Bojo Beach we found a kebab stand. Ghanaian kebabs are a particular treat, called kyinkyinga. They are made of small, tender chunks of beef dusted with a spicy rub of peanut flour and hot pepper, dabbed with oil and then grilled over charcoal.
In the North Industrial area we found another great chop bar called “Ofie Special”. They specialize in fufu. Fufu is a mix of pounded steamed plantains and cassava root usually served with a with spicy groundnut or palm soup.
Across from the Alliance Française on Liberation Link in the Airport Residential Area we found this delightful street food stand with delicious fried yams. These yams are completely unrelated to the sweet potato. Yams are much larger than potatoes and sweet potatoes, on average they can grow up to 8.2 feet and 154 lbs! Yam fries are actually very similar to the American potato fries. It is often served with Shito sauce which consists primarily of ginger, dried fish or shrimp, tomatoes, garlic and spices. The blend of spices and fish differs between different regions and villages.