Bambara beans kɛ tatale

kwame

July 15, 2016 2:58 PM

Bambara stew is prepared with Bambara beans, a special legume which is indigenous to West Africa and bears a close relationship to groundnuts.

Bambara beans stew, popularly called aboboi by the people of Greater Accra, is one of Ghana’s most delicious meals. By delicious we mean sweetened with actual sugar.

If you hear a Ghanaian say that it is only Europeans who add sugar to their stews and soups, remind them to take a stroll to Osu-township. If they are lucky, they will find a Ga woman mixing sugar into her Aboboi, and checking it for that perfectly sweet taste.

Due to its mild taste, Bambara beans goes very well with foods that have savouries, sugars and spices. It is because of its mildness that one of its best accompaniments is Tatale.

There’s a beautiful thing about Tatale, you do not have to throw away your squelchy, overripe plantains any longer. Overripe plantains are the perfect ingredients for making Tatale; all you need is your spices, corn flour and red oil for frying.

Most people are Ghana would love to try Bambara beans most of the time, but it takes a really long time to cook. If you plan to have aboboi for lunch at home, you will need to commit both time and effort to it. Bambara beans has to be soaked in water for many hours, sometimes overnight, so that it gets softer before it is put on fire to cook. Even after it has been cooked, its serves and tastes best when a portion of the beans is mashed and poured back into the pot to give it some thickness.

Every time the fear of the tiresome preparation of Bambara beans and Tatale creeps up on you, remember that this food is food for royalty, and that it is meant to be savoured.

Your time will be well spent as you indulge yourself in your Aboboi and Tatale with a dash of gari. Have you ever tried this authentic Ghanaian stew, which tastes wonderful when served with fried plantain, Kaaklo, Tatale, Gari? If not, allow the Onga Efie Aduane Series to show you that the Gas don’t sing about their food for nothing. Bambara Beans Kɛ Tatale is to die for!

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