ガーナの食べ物について
Safe, stable and English-speaking, Ghana has long enjoyed a reputation as the ‘gateway to West Africa’ for first-timers. And it quickly gets under the skin. The people are quick to smile, the music – from classic highlife to newer sounds such as azonto and hiplife – is phenomenal, the west coast beaches are paradise and there’s wonderful (if sweaty) hiking in the low mountains and transitional rainforest of the Volta region. What’s more, you can find some amazingly cheap hostels in great locations, particularly on the western beaches.
But while that’s all in the bag, conventional wisdom says that there’s one major drawback: the food. Ghanaian grub, and West African fare in general, has a reputation for being stodgy and uninspiring. Old hands and expats shudder at the mention of fufu and okro soup – but how much of that is fair, and how much is exaggeration? Actually Ghana has more than a few aces up its sleeve; none of them are haute cuisine, but if you like your meals hearty, spicy and filling, you’ll quickly come to love certain Ghanian dishes, and miss them when your backpacking trip comes to an end. Here are a few things to look out for:
1. ホロホロ鳥
西アフリカに生息する鳥で、ヨーロッパの豪華な料理の一品として人気があります。本場ガーナ料理の秘訣です。スパイスで味付けしたり、バーベキューにしたり、とてもスパイシーなトマトスープに入れて食べます。大ぶりで肉付きが良く、味わい深い料理です。ホロホロ鳥は、鶏と狩猟鳥の中間にあります。
2. Omo tuo(オモトゥオ)とピーナッツのスープ
© Copyrights: PapJeff
Real comfort food. In many chop houses this dish of huge rice balls and rich, nutty stew is a Sunday special. They might look a bit like fufu – big, blobby white things in soup – but omo tuo have a coarser texture and a flavour of, well, rice. As for groundnut soup, if you like peanut butter or satay sauce, you’ll be in heaven.
3. Red red (レッドレッド)
© Copyrights: benketaro
This classic dish has two components: a rich stew of black-eyed peas, and a serving of spicy fried plantain. One’s crisp, one’s smooth; one’s savoury, one has a hint of sweetness; one’s creamy, one has a bit of heat. You can usually add a piece of guinea fowl or chicken, but the basics are more than enough for a full meal.
Look out too for aborboi (Bambara bean) stew, typically eaten with a sprinkling of sugar. It’s delicious, but less common than red red.
4. ジョロフライス
© Copyrights: Charles Haynes
Jollof merits inclusion not because Ghana invented it – several West African countries claim to have, none of them very conclusively – but because you’ll see it everywhere, and it’s good. A mix of rice, onions and veg, fried and reddened with ubiquitous palm oil. It’s a classic accompaniment to grilled meat, moistened with shito, a hot black pepper sauce flavoured with ginger and dried fish.
5. Waakye (ワチェ)
© Copyrights: Mac-Jordan Degadjor
ワチェ(waa-chay)と発音するライスと豆の料理で、道路脇にある屋台で食べることができます。一日中、時間を問わずに楽しめる料理です(朝食やランチが一般的)。ライスと豆をベースにペッパーソース、卵、サラダ、肉、ヌードルなど、ワチェの豊富な付け合わせと一緒にいただきます。
6. フルーツ！
ガーナ料理が口に合わなかったとしても、心配ありません。ガーナは、マンゴー、パパイヤ、パイナップル、とても小さくて甘いバナナが手軽に味わえるフルーツの宝庫です。新鮮なココナッツは街の至る所で購入できます。フルーツファンには夢のような場所です。ホステルで、新鮮なフルーツや安っぽいフランクフルトソーセージ、柔らかい白パン、オムレツ、少量のベイクドビーンズから選べる朝食メニューは、フルーツがお勧めです。