Fufu

Fufu, (variants of the name include foofoo, foufou, foutou), is a staple food of West and Central Africa. It is a thick paste usually made by boiling starchy root vegetables in water and pounding with a mortar and pestle until the desired consistency is reached. In the French-speaking regions of Cameroon, fufu is sometimes called couscous (couscous de Cameroun), not to be confused with the North African dish couscous.^[1]

A bowl of fufu and spicy tomato soup with a chunk of goat meat served at a road stop restaurant on the Accra-Kumasi Highway in Ghana, 2008

Western African fufu

In Western Africa, fufu is usually made from cassava, yams, and sometimes combined with cocoyam, plantains, or maize. In Ghana, fufu is mostly made from boiled cassava and unripe plantain beaten together, as well as from cocoyam. Currently, these products have been made into powder/flour and can be mixed with hot water to obtain the final product hence eliminating the arduous task of beating it in a mortar with a pestle. In Central Africa, fufu is often made from cassava, as is the Liberian dumboy. Fufu can also be made from semolina, rice, or even instant potato flakes. Often, the dish is still made by traditional methods: pounding and beating the base substance in a mortar with a wooden spoon. In contexts where poverty is not an issue, or where modern appliances are readily available, a food processor may also be used.

In Western and Central Africa, the more common method is to serve a mound of fufu along with a soup made from okra, fish (often dried), tomato, etc. In Ghana, fufu is eaten with light (tomato) soup, palm nut soup, groundnut (peanut) soup or other types of soups with vegetables such as nkontomire (cocoyam leaves). Soups are often made with different kinds of meat and fish, fresh or smoked. The diner pinches off a small ball of fufu and makes an indentation with the thumb. This reservoir is then filled with soup, and the ball is eaten. In Ghana the ball is often not chewed but swallowed whole. In fact, chewing fufu is a faux pas.

Sub-Saharan African fufu

A similar staple in Sub-Saharan Africa is ugali, which is usually made from maize flour and is eaten in southern and east Africa. The name ugali is used in Kenya and Tanzania; closely related staples are called nshima in Zambia, nsima in Malawi, sadza in Zimbabwe, pap in South Africa, posho in Uganda, luku, fufu, nshima, moteke and bugari in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

In Nigeria the fufu is white and sticky. The traditional method of eating fufu is to wash your hands then take a marble sized ball of fufu in the right hand. You then make an indentation in the ball and scoop up the stew or soup you are eating; finally eating the fufu itself. Therefore fufu not only serves as a food but also as a utensil.^{[citation needed]}

Foo-foo is frequently mentioned in Chinua Achebe's novel Things Fall Apart.

Caribbean fufu

In Caribbean and the nations with populations of West African origin, such as Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica and Puerto Rico, plantains or yams are mashed and then other ingredients are added. In the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico, the dish is described as mangú and mofongo, respectively. The difference between West African fufu and Caribbean "fufu" is noted in both the texture and the flavorings, Caribbean fufu and mofongo being less of a porridge and more of a firm consistency.

Origin

Fufu originated from Ghana, where it is pronunced "fufuo". The word fufu comes from the Twi language. It is eaten with light (tomato) soup, palm nut soup, groundnut (peanut)-abenqwinesoup or other types of soups with vegetables such as nkontomire (cocoyam leaves). Soups are often made with different kinds of meat and fish, fresh or smoked. Fufu is basically pounded cassava or pounded yam or pounded plantain. It is eaten with agussi soup or stew in Ghana and in the Northeast of Brundi.

Fufu is actually originally from Ghana from the Asante ethnic group.^{[citation needed]} Settlers and migrants from India, Togo and Ivory Coast discovered it and modified it in their accord. The original word is 'fufuo'. The word means two things. The color after it is prepared is usually white and white in Asante language (asante twi) is fufuoop (silent p).^{[citation needed]} (2) The manner in which it was made. The process is called fu-fu (pounding) and that is why they came up with the name fufuo.^{[citation needed]}

References

^ DeLancey, Mark W., and Mark Dike DeLancey (2000). Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Cameroon, 3rd ed. Lanham, Maryland: The Scarecrow Press, p. 134.

{Ghanaian cuisine book and history book)

External links

"Ghana's cooks take to fast fufu". BBC News. 2006-05-29. Retrieved 2008-08-05. about microwavable instant fufu

[1] DeLancey, Mark W., and Mark Dike DeLancey (2000). Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Cameroon, 3rd ed. Lanham, Maryland: The Scarecrow Press, p. 134.

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