What to Eat in Accra (Jollof, Waakye & Red-Red) and Aburi & Cape Coast Trips

Whether you pull up a wooden bench at a neighbourhood chop bar or book a garden table in Osu or Labone, eating in Accra revolves around fragrant rice dishes, slow-simmered palm and groundnut soups, caramelised sweet plantains and fiery black pepper condiment (shito).

Five classic Ghanaian dishes to eat in Accra

1. Ghanaian Jollof Rice: a point of fierce national pride across West Africa, Ghanaian jollof is made with fragrant long-grain basmati or local jasmine rice simmered in a rich tomato, red onion, ginger and scotch bonnet base with spiced beef, goat or grilled chicken, prized for the smoky bottom layer of the pot and served with a spoonful of dark, umami-rich shito (dried shrimp, fish and chilli oil sauce).
2. Waakye (pronounced wah-chay): Accra's beloved breakfast and midday staple. Rice and black-eyed peas are boiled together with dried red sorghum leaf stalks (which tint the grains a deep burgundy-brown), then served in a broad green katemfe leaf with gari (toasted cassava flakes), talia (spaghetti), boiled egg, fried plantain, stewed meat and shito.
3. Red-Red: a vegetarian-friendly coastal classic named for the dual red colour of rich palm oil cowpea bean stew (bambara or black-eyed beans) and golden-orange slices of ripe fried plantain, often sprinkled with crunchy gari.
4. Grilled Tilapia with Banku or Kenkey: whole fresh Volta River tilapia rubbed with ginger, garlic and herbs, chargrilled and served with hot green and red pepper sauce alongside fermented corn-and-cassava dough (banku) or Ga sourdough corn dumplings steamed in corn husks (Ga kenkey).
5. Kelewele and Sobolo: cubes of ripe plantain tossed in crushed ginger, cloves, aniseed and cayenne pepper and fried crisp at dusk along Osu Oxford Street, washed down with chilled spiced hibiscus drink (sobolo) or fresh coconut water.

Two classic day trips: Aburi Botanical Gardens and Cape Coast

If you want a cool breather from the coastal heat in just an hour, drive 35 km north up the winding hairpin road of the Akuapem Ridge (450 metres elevation) to Aburi Botanical Gardens, opened in 1890 and lined with towering royal palms, mahogany, nutmeg, cocoa trees and a sculpted hollow Ficus strangler fig tree. With a full day and an early morning start, drive three hours west into the Central Region to walk the rainforest suspension bridges of Kakum National Park and tour the solemn UNESCO whitewashed sea fortresses of Cape Coast Castle and Elmina Castle (St George's d'Elmina, 1482).