Cooking Guide: Waakye Recipe

So much really goes into Waakye recipe that makes it an instant hit among other Ghanaian dishes. This is however not to undermine the impressive array of local dishes that greet the eyes and whet your appetite in the beautiful Ghanaian cities.

Waakye (pronounced Waachay) recipe consists of rice and beans. Attention, this is not your regular rice and beans dish. A culinary juncture where the delicious and the nutritious meet, Waakye is simply slicker than the average.

So what really goes down into the best Waakye recipe? Well, stick around, because you are about to unravel the mystery of Ghana’s most popular delicacy.

Ingredients

Generally, Waakye is simple and the meal requires about 15 minutes of preparation and an hour and a half of cooking time. Here’s a list of ingredients you’ll need:

• 3 cups rice
• 11/2 cup red beans or black-eyed peas, or any kind of beans or peas
• 6 dry sorghum leaves (or 1 teaspoon of baking soda)
• Some salt to taste
• 15 cups of water

Preparation

The preparation is quite easy but slightly methodical. First, you’ll need to rinse the beans thoroughly and then soak in water for 3–4 hours. Then, you can drain the beans and pour in a pot of water, and let it cook for about 45 minutes.

Be sure to wash the sorghum leaves before cutting them to 3–4 inches. Now, toss them in with the boiling beans, and allow them to cook together. If sorghum leaves are not available, add a teaspoon of baking soda to give the Waakye its distinct colour. Remember to remove the sorghum leaves from the beans after 5 minutes.

Now, it’s time to wash the rice and add it to the beans in the pot. Be sure to add a little more water to accommodate the rice.

Allow the mixture to cook for 15–20 minutes. By this time, the rice should be done. You may now add your preferred seasoning. Keep stirring the mixture while cooking to prevent it from burning, and allow the water to drain enough.

Voilà!  Your Waakye is ready to be savoured.

Serving

Waakye is usually served for breakfast or lunch with a typical Ghanaian spicy pepper sauce. Like Jollof Rice, it can be a standalone meal itself or it can be eaten with some spaghetti, boiled eggs and with fish, chicken, beef, and vegetables. You can choose fish stew or Shito sauce? to go with your Waakye.

The choice is simply yours.