Ghana – Tuo Zaafi

by Verdzekov Bernard

We leave to eat or we eat to leave? This a question many people answer it wrongly. Normally the answer is, we eat to leave. Food is very an important substance that sustain life on earth. We give thanks to the creator. That is why in Africa, we African children from birth are thought how to pray before we eat. Our parent say it is very important to give thanks before eat. This training is common and very necessary. Food in Africa is so delicious and I will like all to try it. Today, I will be writing on Tuo Zaafi. This is a Ghanaian cuisine that is made up of three separate dishes to make one single dish. This is common in Africa and even Europe. Different dishes are combined to make one dish. To become successful preparing this dish, follow guide below. 

Tools you may likely use

• A wooden stick for your Tuo Zaafi
• Cooking spoon 
• Gas cooker
• Pots
• Plates 
• Table spoon
• Cup
• Knife 
• Chopping-Board 

Ingredients

• Ayoyo leaves 
• 3 cups of cassava flour
• 1 cup of corn flour
• Smoked fish
• Salt to taste
• Maggi 
• Palm oil or vegetable oil 
• Tomatoes 
• Onions 
• Garlics and ginger 
• Goat meat 

Procedure

• Cut your goat meat in to small eatable slices.  Wash the meat so well. Boil with salt to taste and keep aside. 
• Make sure you keep the meat stock.
• Slice your tomatoes and onions. 
• Slice your ginger and garlics and blend 
• You could either use your vegetable oil palm oil. As well as you could still use both red oil and vegetable oil. Put your oil in the pot and heat up. Fry your onions. When it is translucent, add your tomatoes and fry. Fry well and make sure you are stirring as to prevent it from sticking to the pot. Add your ginger and garlics and fry. Stir well. Add your meat stock. Don’t add so much of it. That is because you need the soup thick and not watery. Add your goat meat and stir well. If too thick add some meat stock and stir. Allow pot open and allow for about 15min then you remove. After making your goat sauce, go make your Ayoyo sauce.

To prepare your Ayoyo sauce, 

• Simply wash your Ayoyo leave well. After washing your leaves, using a knife, cut the leaves into tiny slices.
• Stand your main cooking pot on your gas cooker and put 2 cups or mocks of water, allow the water to boil well. After it has boiled, add your Ayoyo leaf’s and leave them to boil well. Make sure you are stirring. Add your dry scattered fish and stir well. Add your maggi and salt to taste. Allow your Ayoyo to cook well. In about 10min, remove and set aside. 

To cook your Tuo zaafi 

• Using a different cooking pot, make sure the pot is mediumly big enough to contain the Tuo zaafi. Boil your water. Scope about 3 cups of flour and put into a bowl. Add fresh water to the bowl and stir well. 
• After you stir well add the mixed flour into the boiling water. Stir well and make sure you don’t have any lumps. Cover pot and allow for about 15min.
• Scope another cup of flour. This is to be used when your content in the pot has boiled well. make sure you do your stirring with a wooden spoon. Add the powder flour into the pot and stir well. stir until it solidifies. Add warm water if too dry or thick. Mix well using the wooden spoon. Most at times, the first time of cooking this, you may not likely be successful. You may experience some lumps in your Tuo zaafi. But it is normal. When you practice often, you will be perfect. Mold your Tuo Zaafi into any shape. That is round or rectangle. Whatever shape you desire.  

Serve by putting your Ayoyo sauce in a plate, then secondly the goat meat stew on the Ayoyo sauce. Then put your Tuo Zaafi in a separate plate.

Enjoy…