Ghana Night

Post date: 06-May-2013 22:04:44

25th May 2013

These people are trying to get a seat at Ghana Night at PSC....me, me, pick me!

I first met Nana as a regular at the supperclub, but she then went on to be a volunteer and did one of our first Guest Chef appearances, cooking us some delicious home-cooked Ghanaian food. We last did this supperclub over a year ago, but it still holds the record as selling out in the shortest period of time, 1 1/2 hours!

Her peanut soup has since become legendary and even my Chinese mother, highly suspicious of African food, loved it.

Here are a few words from her, that she wrote for the first one she cooked:

When Alicia agreed for me to volunteer my culinary efforts I could hardly believe my luck. Lucky, because despite the abundance and choice of restaurants we have in London town, very few of these centre on the numerous types of cuisine from sub-Saharan Africa. All too often, I've noticed that places that do offer West African food are simply a 'hole in the wall' type of joint - almost clandestine in their existence with absolutely no focus on the very experience of eating out and sharing a meal with others. A crying shame in my opinion.

The menu I'd like to share with you tonight is the food I grew up eating. Despite my mother coming to England from Ghana when she was ten and essentially growing up British, there was always a strong emphasis on food from 'back home' and the dishes below are family favourites that irrespective of the occasion, seem to come up time and time again. The sights, smells and sounds in the shopping, the chopping, the stiring and the frying and the memories they evoke, are as comforting to me as they are an almost an integral rite of passage for a Ghanaian girl growing up.

I hope you will enjoy eating them as much as I have done sharing them with you.

*****

Deep fried yam chips - a typical Ghanaian street food as seen on the streets of Accra

Grilled fish with onions and peppers

Shitoh - hot pepper sauce that can be eaten with absolutely everything and is especially popular with Ghanaian school children sent to boarding school

Peanut soup - served with rice balls

Kosai - deep fried bean fritters

*****

Jollof rice - the West African answer to paella

Meat/Chicken stew - rice is a staple in this country and these tomato-based stews form the basis of many Ghanian dishes

Gari foto - how do I describe this? It’s a kind of grain you mix with water, mixed with a delicious tomato and corned beef stew - yummy!

Fried plantains - amazingly delicious when the plantains are soft and sweet

And of course - Ghana salad (layered salad with lettuce, tomatoes, boiled eggs, potatoes, baked beans (!) (it works!) and sometimes tinned fish too

*****

Ghanaians don’t have traditional desserts although a slice of cake or fresh pineapple are quite common at family gatherings. Alicia will prepare her famous pineapple upside down cake as her contribution!

Cost will be £45 a head of which £35 will go direct to MSF. Big thanks to Nana for helping us to raise over £500 for MSF.

Please e-mail us with bookings!

Alicia