Who would have thought, Ghanaian and Chinese cuisine sharing any similarities! All you hardcore I-can't find-any-good-fufu-in -London Ghanaians are probably thinking it's as unlikely as finding a Mexican burrito in Mokola Market - just wouldn't happen, right? Well, you're kind of right. If you recall, I touched upon Chinese/Ghanaian food in my post Ghanaian cuisine and it's really not that much of an anomaly. Recently, over the last 10 years or so, Ghana (namely Accra) has seen an influx of immigrants from China, Thailand and India travel to its sandy shores to set up businesses along with the more established Lebanese communities who have been residents in Ghana since the 50s, as my Mum warmly remembers in an innocently, sightly un-pc way - 'They owned all the shops'. So, walking through Accra today you will find a number of Chinese restaurants and Ghanaians LOVE an all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet for 3 cedis!
My Mum came home last week with a bottle of Chinese chili sauce she'd picked up from Wing Yip and as she was preparing dinner she mused, ' It's just like shito'. After a quick inspection of the ingredients, I realised how right she was! Made from fried and minced shrimps with chili powder, the sauce is identical - so, is it Ghanaian chili sauce or Chinese chili sauce - I prefer Ghanese myself. What do you think of my pretty naff amalgamation? Thoughts please!
Have seen Shito in the shops over the years but never tried it - what kind of heat does it hold? Scotch Bonnet hot or lower down on the burn scale?
ReplyDeleteHi Vanessa, welcome to HP!
ReplyDeleteHigh burn factor! But then again, you can make it according to taste - my Mum has always made her shito with an extra dose of pepper. So if you don't fare to well with spicy foods, you can always reduce the amount of chilli you add in!