Some of the best food in Accra never sees a restaurant. It is sold from stands, pans and trays along the roadside, cheap, fresh and quick. Here are ten street snacks to try, and what each one is.
Kelewele
Ripe plantain cubed and fried with ginger, pepper and spices, sweet and hot at once. Sold in the evenings, and best eaten straight from the pan while it is fresh.
Bofrot
Sweet fried dough balls, sometimes called bofloat, crisp outside and soft inside. A classic morning or teatime snack, sold warm by the piece.
Roasted plantain with groundnuts
Plantain roasted over coals until soft and a little charred, eaten with a handful of groundnuts. Simple, filling and one of the great cheap snacks of the roadside.
Khebab
Skewered, spiced grilled meat, dusted with a peppery mix, cooked over coals as you wait. An evening favourite, and a snack that easily becomes a small meal.
Roasted corn
Corn roasted on the cob over coals, chewy and smoky, often eaten with a piece of coconut. A seasonal treat that appears when the corn is in.
Meat pie
A pastry filled with seasoned meat, handy and portable, sold from stands and shops across the city. The everyday snack for a quick bite on the move.
Fresh coconut
Cut open for you at the roadside, you drink the water then have the soft flesh scraped out to eat. Cheap, hydrating and everywhere on a hot day.
Groundnuts
Roasted peanuts, sold in small bags, the simplest snack of all and a staple to keep in your bag. Sometimes still warm from roasting.
Plantain chips
Thin slices of plantain fried crisp, sold in packets, sweet or savoury depending on how ripe the plantain was. The perfect thing to chew on a long trotro ride.
Fried yam with pepper
Yam cut into chips and fried golden, served with a hot pepper sauce. Hearty and satisfying, and a favourite quick bite when you want something more than a nibble.
Half the fun is buying it fresh from the person making it, so follow your nose to the busy stands where the food is moving. Start with kelewele and khebab in the evening, and work your way through the rest one roadside at a time.
