Original article published at TasteAtlas.
Fufu is Ghana’s national dish, a starchy side dish, and an important accompaniment to various stews and sauce-based dishes. It is also very popular and regularly eaten throughout West and Central Africa.
Fufu is very difficult to make, a process that starts by pounding cassava and unripe plantains together with a big wooden pole and mashing them while adding water. As it needs to be vigorously stirred, it usually takes two people to make it – one pounding it, and the other moving it around between the pounding. Once the mixture is smooth, it gets shaped into small balls that are then placed in a stew or soup with meat.
Similar to the Tanzanian ugali, an indentation is made in the ball, used for scooping up the sauce, with fufu acting as a spoon. The texture is quite gummy and stretchy, while the taste is a little bit flavorless, but dipping it into a stew gives fufu a spicy flavour that is slightly reminiscent of peanuts. Just make sure not to eat with your left hand, as this is considered extremely disrespectful in many parts of Africa, because the left hand is used for toilet-related actions.