Ghana Update Weeks 4 & 5: My Favorite Things {Part 2}

This post is all about fruit….. I know what you're thinking: "Really?
Fruit? How much could you possibly have to say about fruit?!"
Well…. As you can see, quite a bit 

Pineapple, Mango, and Banana

There are at least two kinds of pineapple here: yellow and white. The
yellow one has more acid in it, but it's pretty awesome. The white
one is smaller and sweeter. It's like eating candy. Vendors sell
full pineapple – both kinds – on the side of the road. They will even
cut it for you. And they only cost about 1 cedi (65 cents) each.

There are mango trees all around the campus. These mangoes are good,
but nothing beats the large ones you get in the market or up in the
Eastern Region. The meat of those isn't stringy and it makes a great
dessert. It reminds me of a Thai dessert I've had a couple times that
mixes milk and mango – it might sound weird, but try it some time. So
good. Mango is now on my list of favorite fruits.

Most of the banana I see around Ghana is sort, about three inches
long. The flavor is super concentrated so it's really, really sweet.
And they are sold in bunches so you buy about a dozen at a time.
Which is both good and bad: you are never satisfied with just one but
if you start eating, you might arrive home empty handed.

Food is a pretty common gift around here. The principal at the school
especially likes to give gifts of fruit. A couple weeks ago I bought
some pineapple for each house. I felt very Ghanaian.

Coconut

Another food commonly purchased on the roadside is coconut. Men set
up wheelbarrows full of coconuts at major junctions where travelers
change transport. For just a few coins they will open the fruit with
a machete so you can drink the milk and eat the meat. Before
selecting one for you, the vendors will ask your coconut preference:
soft or hard. The meat of the soft coconut is the consistency of
jell-o, maybe a little slimmer. The flavor is good, but it's the
texture that turns people off some times. The meat of the hard
coconut is firmer and definitely my preference. But before you get to
the meat, you have to drink all the milk. Every time, without fail,
coconut milk drips down my chin and on to my shirt – much to the
amusement of the vendor, my fellow coconut-lovers, and really anyone
standing nearby.

Plantain

Like coconut, you can eat this in its hard and soft variety. The hard
ones will be cut very thin and fried into chips. Although you can get
them in stores, you usual purchase this very common street food from
street vendors who weave in and out of traffic. The golden ones have
just a hint of sweetness, while the darker ones have a sweeter flavor.
My guess is that this snack is healthier than potato chips and if I
could find them in the US, I would eat them instead. The soft variety
is also fried and looks a lot like dark French fries. These are
typically served with a dish called red red, a back-eyed pea and
tomato dish that usually has a bit of a kick. These are really sweet
and become a fast favorite with all the American visitors. My own
plate has more plantain than red red – today I just skipped the red
red and went straight for the plantain…