|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Ghanaian food is shaped by centuries of varied influences. The culinary landscape is a delicious blend of traditional flavors and indigenous products.
Situated on West Africa’s Gulf of Guinea, Ghana is home to diverse ethnic groups. “Food in Ghana is a canvas of our history, cultural diversity, creativity and hospitality. Each meal echoes traditions and customs passed down through generations,” says Lydia Kekeli Amenyaglo of the Ghana Food Movement. Check out this article for a tantalizing overview of Ghanaian food culture’s diversity, appeal and vibrancy.
“Ghana is recognized as a homecoming hub for the African diaspora,” Dr. Wanida Lewis, founder of Crescendo Foods, shares as a backgrounder to both this emerging culinary destination. Lewis and her team are preparing to launch Plate2Plate, a cultural exchange “culinarian-in-residency” program, “like study abroad,” she explains this July.
The plan is to host the first carefully curated small group for three weeks, July 5 – 26. “We expect interest from people who want to learn about African cuisine, specifically Ghana’s cuisine and food culture.
“Participants are likely to include chefs, food anthropologists, food scientists, food bloggers. People with some type of connection to food, drawn by the opportunity to participate in a unique epicurean experience, explore new flavors and cooking styles, and access the rich tapestry of African food and culture,” says Lewis, a food scientist by trade.
Similar to other residency programs, says Dr. Lewis, “There is a tuition fee, which covers accommodations, food, an ingredient stipend where relevant, transport within Ghana, and of course I’ll be helping them with cultural aspects and tours. They’ll have to take care of their flight, but we’ll help with visas.”
Ethical Chocolate
During the application process, which ends March 5, prospective culinarians will be quizzed on their specific study interests. “Someone might say, I’m a pastry chef. During my time in Ghana, I want to discover all I can about what’s sweet and local. Then we’d likely have them learn what people do with the pineapples grown here, which are very different from what we’re used to in the U.S.”
She continues, “We might introduce them to the different types of flour used here and take them to see how to make chocolate. So we’ll make each program a really nicely curated experience.”
- Gloria Allorbi’s Nostalgia For Home Creates the Gloria’s Shito Story
- Mick Élysée Changes the Game With His Sustainable Agenda in Ghana
A side note for all you chocoholics, Ghana is one of the largest cacao producers in the world, second only to Côte d’Ivoire. Ghanaian cacao is known for its quality and flavour and while exploitation continues, there is a move to ethical production by smallholder farmers on small family farms.
“Then, because we’re a nonprofit and we’re about giving back to the community. Built into the Plate2Plate program is a knowledge exchange. We want to make sure participants are able to and want to contribute to the culinary landscape here in Ghana by sharing knowledge with those they are learning from and who they encounter during their residency. Participants might offer a master class, a cooking demonstration, a pop-up where they work with Ghanaian chefs. Perhaps do something with a school.”
Ghanaian Food Culture
If you’ve read the 2023/24 Cuisine Noir print issue with its theme, Africa Rising, you will have met Dr. Wanida Lewis, who moved from the U.S. to Ghana and founded Crescendo Foods, the country’s first shared kitchen coworking hub.
Raised in South Jersey, Lewis was 16 when she traveled overseas for the first time to Italy as a French horn player with a musical ensemble and her dad as chaperone. “We still, 20 years later, talk and laugh about the good time it was.”
A delightful person to interview (this was my second time engaging with the good doctor, the first time being for the print issue), it struck me that Dr. Lewis is the perfect person to share Ghana and Ghanaian food culture with the world.
There is undisguised wonder and amazement in her voice as she talks. When she describes her various day-to-day discoveries and ideas. When hearing her undiluted curiosity and interest in people, in the world, in Africa, in her neighborhood, in those she connects with.
From a young age, she imagined herself someday living outside the United States. Like most Americans, she says, she assumed it would be Europe. Instead, after her life journey took her to Ghana a couple of times, it was here that she moved in 2021.
Let me share a brief overview of her remarkable credentials, and you’ll have to get a copy of the print issue to learn the rest. She completed her bachelor of science in chemistry at Saint Augustine’s, the private historically Black Christian college in Raleigh, North Carolina; her master’s in analytical chemistry at North Carolina Central University, a public historically Black university in Durham; and her Ph.D. in food science back in Raleigh, this time at North Carolina State University, known as a powerhouse in science, technology, engineering and math.
This multifaceted woman is also qualified to teach three types of yoga: restorative, yin and vinyasa (flow yoga).
Plate2Plate Curated By Crescendo Foods
Plate2Plate will operate from this same space. “Indigenous practices and ingredients are gaining popularity, coming to the forefront, in no small part due to documentaries such as High on the Hog,” says Dr. Lewis, referencing the Netflix series, which showcases African American cuisine’s transformative role in the U.S.
But up till now, she says, there have been no cultural exchange programs highlighting African or diaspora cuisines.
Three weeks, the length of the initial program (others in the future could be longer, shorter, and strategically placed through the year — keep checking on their social media), is a pretty extensive time. “When I was looking at culinary residency programs there are those that offer one month; others doing three months.
“Many people come to Ghana for a week and then it’s like a whirlwind. You want them to be able to enjoy their time here. I was initially told to come for two weeks and ended up, my first visit, coming for ten days. I felt I missed so much. So when I came back, I was here for a month. Then three months.”
She feels three weeks would be just long enough for a comprehensive introduction to Ghanaian food culture and did something of a test run with her parents. “They came for three weeks, and it’s like you’re still dealing, first, with jet lag, but there’s enough time to get a little acclimated because once you start going, the next thing, three weeks is over. It goes by really fast, but it worked well.”
Exploring Beyond Accra
The three weeks will include day trips. The Accra city tour is a day trip. But a trip to the Cape Coast, one of the country’s most historic cities and a World Heritage Site where participants will get to visit the Door of No Return will most likely be an overnight trip.
“We’d like for them to also go to the Volta region.” There are around 16 regions in Ghana representing different ways of life and Ghanaian food culture. Depending on which part of the Volta region is included, an overnight trip is anticipated. To get the most out of the visit, the program will also encourage participants to learn a bit of the local language before they arrive,” says Lewis.
“We’re planning the program to include one trip a week so people don’t get confused and disoriented. That way, they will have time to get back and relax. Of course they will still have to do a community event and perhaps a master class, whatever they’ve decided on, so we need to give enough time and make sure they are set up for success.”
culinarians will get to visit food spaces, meet restaurant owners and experience the diversity of food that’s in Ghana.
“So maybe a chop bar and also Ghana’s spin on fine dining.” Markets. Farms. Street dining. Seafood and bush food. The cornucopia of Ghanaian food culture.
She says they are now looking for partnerships and sponsorships not only to make the programs a success but also to offload any additional costs. “You may have someone who wants to stay longer but is not able to afford it at the time, so we want to have partnerships able to contribute or offer scholarships. And we want to accommodate participants who may have a shorter window.”
RELATED: A Father’s Farm Inspires POKS Spices, Blended in Bold West African Flavors
Applications for Plate2Plate are now open and due by Monday, March 5, via this form online.
For details, including costs for the Crescendo Foods’ cultural exchange program, ongoing updates, information and to rent space or host events, contact Lewis and her team via the website or on Facebook and Instagram.
Individuals, companies and organizations interested in partnering with Crescendo Foods for sponsorships, partnerships and other collaborations should email admin@crescendogh.com or call +233 059 392 3603.
