Month: August 2020

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Zucchini pancakes!

In Korea there is a dish called “yachaejeon” (야채전) which literally means “vegetable pancake.” You mince or chop veggies finely, add a little flour and some seasonings to taste and then fry them up. In Ghana we’re used to pancakes being a sweet food, but once you try it and season it to your liking, you’ll have a whole new item to add to your repertoire.

I made these zucchini pancakes as an experiment to see how they tasted, and they were great. If you don’t have zucchini, you can use pretty much any other vegetable. Onions, carrots, cabbage, mushrooms, even the dandelion you find growing in your backyard. It can be just one veggie, it can be a mix of veggies, you can throw in some seafood or an egg or two for binding. The only things that don’t work too well are wet veggies like tomatoes and cucumbers, but there might be a way to make them tastier.

Recipe (of sorts)

-Finely chopped, minced or grated veggies

-Enough flour and water to form a pourable batter. Be careful with the water because some vegetables like zucchini and cabbage release water as they sit.

-Add an egg for better binding if you wish. I usually add one for protein

-Add a little salt, sesame oil, black pepper, other condiments to taste. Leave out anything you don’t want except the salt. I usually chill the batter in the fridge for an hour or two to allow the flavours to meld and develop. It’s a tip I picked up from a blog, but whether it really works or not, who knows?

-Heat up a pan with a little oil, add a ladle of pancake batter and fry on both sides until crisp.

The insides will still be moist and fluffy because of the moisture content in the vegetables, so don’t think about getting the whole thing dry.

This almost-burnt one is for my mom, who is of the Ghanaian persuasion that food must be cooked and cooked and cooked aaa until it can’t be cooked any more. And then cook it a little more just in case.

Enjoy with whatever sauce you like. In the blue bowl I have a mix of soy sauce and vinegar, my preferred dipping sauce for savory Asian dishes.

But instead of soy sauce and vinegar, you can use ketchup, salad dressing, chili oil, shitor, or just enjoy it plain. A word of caution: it doesn’t taste as good when cold or reheated, so eat it as fast as possible. You can also store the batter in the fridge for at least a day, so fry it up when ready to serve. Enjoy~

I should have other pictures I’ve taken of other vegetable pancakes that I’ve made, so I’ll post them whenever I find them. See you then!

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Clearing random food pics from my computer

Exactly what it says in the title. Sometimes I have random pictures I took, or photos someone sent me over WhatsApp, or photos I have no idea how I got. Once in a while I clear out my phone and delete them, but since I have a handy food blog that I rarely post on, I might as well post them here before I delete them.

My sister sent me this photo of a “Coconut Cashew Crunch” snack she found for sale at Shoprite. She knows I love coconuts and I love cashews, and she said it was delicious. I think the price was around 20 Ghana cedis, but that was like 5 years ago so it’s probably 40 cedis or more now. For that price I can buy about 20 “akpenator” coconuts, or 20 fresh coconuts. Or 20 lone cashews, because cashews are expensive, haha. Anyway I’ve never tried this product because the ingredients are so cheap, but the packaging is great and I’m told it tastes nice. Try it if you get the chance.

Random sausages my sister bought from a place called “Tea Baa.” It is (was?) a cafe style place she visited a few times and said they had decent sausages. And yeah, they weren’t bad. Just that they contained a lot of water, as you can see in the pan, so they looked deceptively plump. The taste was okay, actually better and less “chemical” than many sausages I’ve tried locally. Unfortunately I don’t know where they were sourced apart from Tea Baa, so I can’t tell you.

Every once in a while, a human being just wants to chew meat. In fact I once had a business idea to run a stall that sells just grilled and roasted meat, and lots of it. Maybe one or two sides, but really just meeeeaaaaat. You can take the idea if you want, just send me some kickbacks.

Anyway, this fine steak you see here was bought from Shoprite some years ago. Was it beef? Was it pork? I think it was pork because it was delicious and tender despite being cooked so thoroughly. I covered it in jerk sauce and marinated it for an hour or two before cooking, soooo yummy. Since then I’ve had some very dodgy and stinky meat from Shoprite so I’m not so hot on buying their meat any more. But this one was a good experience.

When you walk right into Shoprite at Osu, there’s a small display with goods that have almost reached their sell by date. It’s a good opportunity to pick up cheap sauces, condiments and other foods you wouldn’t normally touch. I think this Spicy Tikka Masala cost about 10 cedis? Very cheap, nothing to lose at that price. I’ve bought other sauces for around that cost as well, like salad dressings and Ina Paarman dressings and stuff. Some were hits, some were misses, either way for 10 cedis it’s a bargain.

This was some years ago, though, so I don’t remember the taste clearly. I know for a fact it wasn’t spicy at all. What I did with it… I put some on chicken and roasted it in the oven. Maybe I didn’t add enough because it tasted pretty bland. You’re better making your own, really, unless you can get it on sale like I did.

Saving the best for last, these Baresa garlic-stuffed olives were the bomb! My sister and I are still talking about them years after they’ve been eaten and digested and become part of the food chain. They were just that delicious. Sharp, tangy, garlicky, refreshingly good! If you like pickles even just a little, if you like garlic even a tiny bit, get these for sure and try them.

As for where to find them… honestly I can’t say. These were a gift from a relative in the UK (thanks so much Bro. E!). I think they can be found at Lidl, if you have anyone coming down. Alternatively, now that there are so many foreign grocery stores like Citydia and Farmer’s Market etc, you might get lucky and find some there. If you do, buy 10 bottles. You won’t regret it!