Facts you never Knew about waakye
Waakye, a local dish in Ghana that has got international recognition and have remained the favourite food of more than 85% of the Ghanaian population.
we bring you some amazing facts you never knew about your favourite dish, waakye.
Brief info about waakye
Waakye is a Ghanaian dish of cooked rice and beans, commonly eaten for breakfast or lunch. The rice and beans, usually black eyed peas or cow beans, are cooked together, along with red dried sorghum leaf sheaths or stalks and limestone. The sorghum leafs and limestone give the dish its characteristic flavor and a red appearance and the sorghum is taken out before consumption.
Waakye is commonly sold by roadside vendors. It is then commonly wrapped in banana leaf and accompanied by one or more of wele stew, boiled chicken eggs, garri, shito, vegetable salad of cabbage, onions and tomatoes, spaghetti or fried plantain.
Facts you never Knew about waakye
The dish, which originated from the northern parts of Ghana, may be the origin of the rice and beans dishes commonly found in the Caribbean and South America, brought there through slave trade.
Over 85% of Ghanaians like Waakye
An arguably, a significant number of Ghanaian have develop an irresistible taste for the dish, from our findings one can conclude that over 85% of Ghanaian like the dish
Most Ghanaian like Waakye sold in the Zongo
Generally, it appears waakye from zongos taste sweeter and usually comes with a satisfactory feeling. Ghanaian dont mind walking several meters to get Waakye from Hajia Memuna,or Amina some where in the heart of a zongo.
Collectively referred to as Zongos, Zongo communities are found in all 10 Regions of Ghana with much denser populations in Greater Accra and Ashanti regions. The earliest bustling Zongo communities in Ghana started in Salaga and by the first quarter of the 19th century similar communities were already established in Tamale, Yeji and Ejisu. The largest and one of the oldest Zongos close to the coastal belt started in 1836 in Nima
Most Ghanaians prefer waakye and Wele to waakye and egg
It slimply amazing how most Ghanaian prefer less nutritious Cowhides called wale to egg when it comes to eating waakye.
Wele or Coat are the names for a meat-snack in Ghana, in Nigeria it’s called Pomo. It’s a matter of pieces of unprocessed cowhides which come mostly from Mali, Nigeria or Benin and over Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast or Togo to Kumasi and from there on the Ghanaian coast. These cowhide pieces are salted and dried over a period of several months until they are offered as meat-snacks on the markets in Ghana. They should be “eaten with strong teeth”, that’s meaning that’s a “non age-friendly food”. For people with decayed teeth, and toothless oldies is the consumption of Wele not to commend
You can purchase Waakye with GHS3 or even less
With GHS 3, one could get waakye with the basic features like gari and leaves, sometimes even egg or wale. Some vendors have also created a brand for themselves and have price tags ranging from GHS10 for the basic package of waakye
Nutritional benefits of Waakye
Source-Nutrition Rank
Waakye (Beans and Rice) has a high-calorie, very high-carb, low-fat and high-protein content. It is a good source of Iron, Vitamin C, Thiamin, Niacin and Folate.
The carbohydrate profile of the the food reveals it is very high in complex carbs and low in Simple carbs. Carbs are our primary source of energy but its source should be chosen with utmost care. Complex carbs are a more desirable addition to your diet, where as simple carbs should be consumed in moderation as it is very easily broken down, assimilated and absorbed in the body. Its sugar content is among the bottom 20 percentile. This is for people watching their sugar intake. With 11.2 gms of protein, it is high in protein content, which is an important macronutrient that helps with tissue repair, provides energy and improves immunity.
Because of its low fat content, it could be suitable option, especially if you’re watching your fat intake for health reasons. It’s low MUFA and low PUFA.
It is also rich in Vitamin C, whose benefits include, but are not limited to protection against immune system deficiencies, cardiovascular disease, prenatal health problems, eye disease, and even skin wrinkling.
Facts you never Knew about waakye
Have you Tasted Waakye before? lets know your thoughts About the dish at the comment section
