Waakye

About This Recipe

Waakye (pronounced 'waacheh') is one of Accra's most beloved breakfast and lunch dishes, sold from large stainless steel pots by waakye sellers starting at dawn. The dish's distinctive red-brown color comes from dried sorghum leaves or millet stalks cooked with the rice and beans — the natural pigments tint the whole dish beautifully. Waakye is never eaten alone: it comes with an extraordinary array of accompaniments — spaghetti, fried plantain, hard-boiled egg, fried fish, kelewele, gari (cassava granules), and shito (black pepper sauce) — all piled onto one plate in a glorious, generously portioned heap.

Ingredients

Serves 6

• 300 glong-grain white rice
• 400 gcanned black-eyed peas or cowpeas
• 10 driedwaakye leaves (sorghum stalks)(or 2 tsp baking soda for color)
• 1 tspsalt
• 600 mlwater

Instructions

1. 1

   Extract the color

   Add waakye leaves to water and bring to a boil. Simmer 15 minutes until the water turns deep reddish-brown. Remove leaves.

2. 2

   Cook rice and beans

   Add washed rice and drained black-eyed peas to the colored water. Add salt. Bring to boil, reduce heat, cover and cook 25 minutes until rice is tender and water absorbed.

3. 3

   Serve

   Serve with any or all traditional accompaniments: fried plantain, hard-boiled egg, stewed greens, shito, and fried fish.

Variations

• •

  Add smoked fish to the stew accompaniment

• •

  Use red kidney beans instead of cowpeas

• •

  Vegetarian: swap the protein for roasted king oyster mushrooms, smoked tofu or cooked chickpeas — adjust seasoning slightly upward to compensate.

• •

  Spicier: add a finely chopped fresh chile or a teaspoon of crushed Aleppo/Urfa pepper to the aromatics for warm, layered heat instead of a single sharp hit.

Storage

Keeps 2 days refrigerated. Reheat with a splash of water.

Frequently Asked Questions