Tools and Ingredients
blender
cheesecloth
strainer or colander
large bowl
Scant cup dried unsweetened grated coconut (preferably organic)
1½ cups hot water
Directions
1. Put a scant cup of the dried coconut into a blender container. Pour in 1 cup of the hot water and blend for 2 or 3 minutes.
2. Place the colander or strainer over a large bowl and line it with the cheesecloth. Pour the coconut-water mixture from the blender into the cheesecloth, using a spatula to scrape it all in.
3. Pick up the cheesecloth from the ends and twist to get all the liquid out and into the bowl. Put the coconut in the cheesecloth back into the blender and add another ½ cup of hot water and blend again for 1 or 2 minutes and then repeat the process with the cheesecloth. Discard the coconut dregs or use for added fiber in baking.
4. Pour the coconut milk into a jar and store for up to a few days in the refrigerator.
Make ahead:I always use my coconut milk as soon as I make it, but you can also freeze leftovers in an ice cube tray to use later. After freezing, store the cubes in the freezer in a covered container.
To use: The coconut cream rises to the top and can be used like cream or stirred back into the milk when using.
Toasting and Grinding Corn Flour
Ablemamu
Toasted corn flour is a key ingredient in several Ghanaian classics. While it is easy to buy this corn flour in Ghana, those of us outside Ghana may need to make our own unless we have access to an international or online market where it is sold. One solution is to simply toast cornmeal in a dry frying pan, but I prefer this “make-do” version. This produces a toasted corn that is still not quite as fine as Ghana’s, but quite acceptable.
Ingredients
1 cup white popcorn kernels
Directions
1. Preheat a heavy skillet over medium heat. Toast the popcorn on medium heat, shaking it constantly for about 6 minutes, or until just before the kernels pop.
2. Quickly pour the kernels onto a cool plate so that they do not continue to heat and pop.
3. Grind the kernels in a coffee grinder, straining them through a fine tea strainer and regrinding the chaff until getting the amount needed.
To serve: See recipes on pages 154, 162, and 197.
Fermented Corn and Cassava Doughs
Fermentation is an important culinary technique in tropical countries such as Ghana, especially of starches such as maize (corn) and cassava (also called yucca or manioc). While it is easy to buy freshly prepared corn dough or cassava dough in Ghana, in North America there are generally three choices: 1) make your own; 2) buy an imported “instant powder” version; 3) buy pre-frozen dough from Ghana. For many years, my only option was to make my own, but today with advances in processing techniques and transportation, I am more likely to buy frozen dough, such as Nina’s fermented corn meal (no cassava) or corn and cassava dough. I still find the instant powders do not suit me. Note: While Banku in Ghana is made from both corn and cassava dough, in the U.S. I was taught to make it only with corn dough, which was easily available. I follow that custom here.
In case you do not have access to imports, the traditional “Western” way of making your own dough is given here.
I once asked a food scientist in Ghana why the fermented corn dough in Ghana tastes different from the one I make here in the U.S. I already knew that the dry milled corn flour was coarser than the wet milled corn found in Ghana. He explained that it may partially be because they are different varieties of corn and different bacteria, but primarily because the starches change to sugar differently in the unground and ground corns. Finally, while some people express (possibly excessive) concern about possible aflatoxins on corn that has not been properly dried and processed, this is not a problem for commercially available cornmeal in the United States.
Fermented Corn Dough
Banku Dough
When I was first married, I tried valiantly to ferment masa harina, only to discover that the lime processing of that flour prohibited fermentation from taking place. Here is one way to make your own dough. Note that it takes several days before the fermented dough is ready to use. While people generally prefer white cornmeal in Ghana, yellow cornmeal may be substituted.
Ingredients
3 cups white Indian Head cornmeal or similar stone ground cornmeal
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Directions
1. Put 3 cups of cornmeal into a nonreactive container, like glass or ceramic. Add 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and mix them together well using a wire whisk.
2. Add 2½ to 3 cups of lukewarm water (add a little more if the dough seems very dry). Mix thoroughly with a whisk, cover lightly with a cloth or paper towel and leave to sit in a warm place (counter, stovetop, or oven) for several days, stirring once a day.
3. The dough should begin to bubble up as it ferments. If any mold forms on top, carefully scrape it off. The longer it ferments, the sourer it will become. I usually give mine about 3 days, depending on how warm the weather is. (Some people suggest adding a little vinegar to get the sour taste, but I do not.)
To serve: See recipes on pages 186 and 187.
Fermented Cassava Dough
The Ewe people number between 3 and 6 million, mostly living in Southeastern Ghana in the Volta Region and also southern parts of neighboring Togo and Benin. While Barbara Baëta can and does prepare dishes from all ten regions in the country (and far beyond), she is an Ewe woman and her heart belongs to places like Keta along the coast. On her own table, she displays a love of dishes featuring the riches of the sea and coast along with dishes including cassava dough, such as Akple (page 189), the Ewe version of Banku. It is my understanding that the main difference between the two is fermentation and the cassava dough (Banku is mostly made from fermented corn dough and some cassava dough in Ghana, though I usually make my Banku with just fermented corn dough; Akple is made from unfermented corn and cassava dough).
Here is my approach to creating the cassava dough. Finding fresh cassava is the first challenge. It is a root and will likely be called yucca in U.S. markets. It does not keep well and will probably be coated in wax. Ask someone in the produce department to cut a few tubers in half before you buy them to make sure they are not rotten.
Ingredients
1 pound tubers of fresh cassava/yucca
Directions
1. Peel the cassava and drop them in some water. To peel: cut the ends off, cut the cassava root in half at the center, and then use a sharp knife to peel back the dark bark and remove it. If you also cut the pieces horizontally, you will see a stringy piece running down the center of the cassava; pull it out or grate it along with the rest of the cassava.
2. Grate the cassava into a clean bowl. I use the “fine” side of a box grater. You should end up with around 2½ cups of grated cassava.
3. Put the cassava in a nonreactive bowl (glass, plastic, stainless steel) and add ½ cup of water and swish the cassava and water around with your fingers or a spoon.
4. Drain the wet mixture. My strategy