Ghana to the World: Recipes and Stories That Look Forward While Honoring the Past

Chef Adjepong (Sankofa), who is a first-generation Ghanaian American, presents an enticing mix of traditional and modernized West African recipes in this heartfelt volume. Groundnut soup with guinea fowl, jollof rice, banana fritters, and other family recipes Adjepong grew up enjoying are presented alongside his own creations, including eggs Benedict with scallops and piri piri Hollandaise, mango tart with rum marshmallow, and pan-seared grouper with fried peanut salsa. Acknowledging West Africa’s global impact on culinary history, Adjepong also showcases food of the African diaspora: the American Southern classic of baked red peas, he notes, “has strong ties to West Africa, where cowpeas are from,” and the origins of the Caribbean staple salted cod fritters can be traced back to West African practices of curing seafood. Though sourcing some of the ingredients may be challenging, Adjepong’s instructions are clear and he offers some handy substitution suggestions (cassava can be used instead of puna yam for the puna yam chips). Charming autobiographical anecdotes chronicle Adjepong’s exciting culinary journey, from his first trip to Ghana as a toddler when he fell in love with bofrot (fried doughnuts) to his time competing on Top Chef. Anyone looking to incorporate West African flavors into their repertoire will be inspired. (Mar.)