The beans can be a little salty and spicy, and mixed with the sweet plantains they maks a delicious lunch, dinner, or even breakfast. Breakfast food in Ghana is a little different than what some people might be used to in America. Although people here do eat eggs and toast, it is not uncommon for people to eat lunch or dinner foods for breakfast. An example of this is rice and beans, also known as waakye, pronounced watch-eh. Another one of my favorite foods is jollof rice; pronounced joe-lahf. Jollof rice is very popular in Ghana and you can even order it at the local Kentucky Fried Chicken! It is rice mixed with a varying amounts of spices and tomato sauce. It has its own unique flavor. Sometimes I eat this with big chunks of plantains and a spicy fish sauce called shito, pronounced shee-toe. If you could not tell, I am obsessed with plantains, and I eat them every day. Different soups and stews are also made here and can be eaten at any time of the day. I have tried fish stew, chicken stew, and even goat stew. Fruit is also plentiful in Ghana, such as pineapple, bananas, and mangos. I eat fresh pineapple multiple times a day because they are much sweeter here than in America. An entire pineapple can be purchased for less than five cedis, which is less than one U.S. dollar!
After a couple dishes of jollof or fried rice and zesty vegetable soup, I feel like I could hibernate like a big grizzly bear. It is a different feeling than what I am used to at home, where the foods are very light. It was an adjustment for me to be consuming a lot more rice, soup, and bread. At first, my body started to react differently.
