Ghana Food and Drink Guide: What to Eat and Drink

Signature dishes

Ghanaian food is bold, starchy and built around rich, spicy sauces. The dishes you must try:

• Jollof rice - rice cooked in a tomato, pepper and onion base, often served with chicken or fish. Ghanaians fiercely defend theirs over Nigeria's.
• Banku and tilapia - fermented corn and cassava dough served with grilled tilapia and shito (a dark chilli sauce).
• Fufu - pounded cassava and plantain eaten with light soup or groundnut (peanut) soup, usually with goat or chicken.
• Waakye - rice and beans cooked with millet leaves, served with spaghetti, gari, egg and shito. A beloved breakfast.
• Red red - black-eyed bean stew in palm oil with fried plantain.

Street food

Street food is the heart of Ghanaian eating. Look for:

• Kelewele - spicy fried plantain cubes with ginger, chilli and nutmeg, sold from evening stalls.
• Kenkey - fermented corn dough steamed in leaves, eaten with fried fish and pepper.
• Chichinga (suya) - grilled spiced meat skewers, popular at night.
• Bofrot - sweet fried dough balls, a perfect snack.
• Roasted plantain with groundnuts (kofi brokeman) - a cheap, filling street classic.

A generous street meal often costs only 20 to 40 Ghanaian cedis.

Drinks

• Sobolo - a tart, refreshing hibiscus drink, sometimes spiced with ginger and pineapple.
• Palm wine - naturally fermented sap, best fresh from rural areas.
• Asana - a fermented corn drink with a deep red colour.
• Star and Club - the two big local lagers.
• Akpeteshie - a strong distilled palm or cane spirit, drunk with caution.

Dining tips and etiquette

• Eat with your right hand. Many dishes like fufu and banku are eaten without cutlery; use your right hand only.
• Wash first. Vendors and homes provide water and soap before eating with hands.
• Don't chew fufu - swallow the soft balls dipped in soup.
• Carry cash and small notes - most stalls do not take cards.
• Try chop bars - informal local eateries serving authentic, cheap home-style food.
• Drink bottled or sachet water if you have a sensitive stomach, and ask for less pepper if you cannot handle heat.

Stay connected in Ghana

A HelloSIM eSIM keeps you online for maps, translation and bookings across Ghana with no roaming bills - so you can find that hidden waakye stall and pay with a quick search.