Kenkey (also known as kɔmi, otim, kooboo or dorkunu) is a staple

swallow The swallows, martins, and saw-wings, or Hirundinidae are a family of passerine songbirds found around the world on all continents, including occasionally in Antarctica. Highly adapted to aerial feeding, they have a distinctive appearance. The ...

food similar to sourdough dumplings from the Ga and Fante-inhabited regions of

West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...

, usually served with pepper crudaiola and fried fish,

soup Soup is a primarily liquid food, generally served warm or hot – though it is sometimes served chilled – made by cooking or otherwise combining meat or vegetables with Stock (food), stock, milk, or water. According to ''The Oxford Compan ...

stew A stew is a combination of solid food ingredients that have been Cooking, cooked in Soup, liquid and served in the resultant gravy. Ingredients can include any combination of vegetables and may include meat, especially tougher meats suitable for ...

Description

Kenkey is produced by steeping grains of maize in water for about one week, before they are then milled and kneaded with water into a dough. The dough is allowed to ferment for four days to a week before part of the dough is cooked.

Variations

Areas where kenkey is eaten include

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

, eastern

Côte d'Ivoire Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest city and ...

Togo Togo, officially the Togolese Republic, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to Ghana–Togo border, the west, Benin to Benin–Togo border, the east and Burkina Faso to Burkina Faso–Togo border, the north. It is one of the le ...

and western

Benin Benin, officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It was formerly known as Dahomey. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the north-west, and Niger to the north-east. The majority of its po ...

. It is usually made from ground corn (

maize Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago from wild teosinte. Native American ...

), like sadza and ugali. It is popularly known as kɔmi (pronounced kormi) by the Gas or dokono by the Akans in Ghana. In the

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

, there are variations of an indigenous dessert of Mesoamerican origin, i.e. sweet tamale, which was adopted by Africans brought to the region during slavery and indentureship. As such, African influence can be found in the names of the variations like: ducana (in

Antigua and Barbuda Antigua and Barbuda is a Sovereign state, sovereign archipelagic country composed of Antigua, Barbuda, and List of islands of Antigua and Barbuda, numerous other small islands. Antigua and Barbuda has a total area of 440 km2 (170 sq mi), ...

), duckunoo, duckanoo (also ''blue drawers'' or ''tie-a-leaf'' in

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

), ''doukounou'' (in

Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...

), ''ducunu/ dukunu'' (also ''tamalito'' in

Belize Belize is a country on the north-eastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a maritime boundary with Honduras to the southeast. P ...

), and ''dokonon'' (in French Guiana). In

Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...

, it is called ''conkie'' (pronounced ''/kankee/''). In

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger, more populous island of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the country. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is the southernmost island in ...

it is called ''paime'' (pronounced ''/pay-me/''), and differs in that it does not contain plantain, but may include

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (biology), family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, ...

pumpkin A pumpkin is a cultivar, cultivated winter squash in the genus ''Cucurbita''. The term is most commonly applied to round, orange-colored squash varieties, but does not possess a scientific definition. It may be used in reference to many dif ...

and/or raisins. The dish is usually associated with Christmas time. In

Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...

, it is made with

cornmeal Maize meal is a meal (coarse flour) ground from dried maize. It is a common staple food and is ground to coarse, medium, and fine consistencies, but it is not as fine as wheat flour can be.Herbst, Sharon, ''Food Lover's Companion'', Third Editi ...

, masa or yuca, while in the Caribbean, it is typically made with

, plantain or sweet potato.

Maize Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago from wild teosinte. Native American ...

and sweet potato were staples of the indigenous

Amerindians In the Americas, Indigenous peoples comprise the two continents' pre-Columbian inhabitants, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with them in the 15th century, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with the pre-Columbian population of ...

of the

Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...

, hence

Jamaicans Jamaicans are the citizens of Jamaica and their descendants in the Jamaican diaspora. The vast majority of Jamaicans are of Sub-Saharan African descent, with minorities of Europeans, Indians, Chinese, Middle Eastern, and others of mixed a ...

and other Antilleans typically add sweet potato and grated green bananas to cornmeal or flour with coconut, sugar, spices and vanilla. The mixture is wrapped in banana leaves, then steamed. Fante kenkey 2

Unlike ugali, making kenkey involves letting the maize ferment before cooking. Therefore, preparation takes a few days in order to let the dough ferment. Corn meal is mixed with

cornstarch Cornflour, cornstarch, maize starch, or corn starch (American English) is the starch derived from corn (maize) grain. The starch is obtained from the endosperm of the kernel. Corn starch is a common food ingredient, often used to thicken s ...

and water is added until a smooth and consistent dough is obtained. It is covered and left in a warm place for the fermentation to take place. After fermentation, the kenkey is partially cooked, wrapped in

banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large treelike herbaceous flowering plants in the genus '' Musa''. In some countries, cooking bananas are called plantains, distinguishing the ...

leaves,

corn Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout Poaceae, grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago ...

husks, or

foil Foil may refer to: Materials * Foil (metal), a quite thin sheet of metal, usually manufactured with a rolling mill machine * Metal leaf, a very thin sheet of decorative metal * Aluminium foil, a type of wrapping for food * Tin foil, metal foil ma ...

, and steamed. There are several versions of kenkey, such as Ga and Fante kenkey. The Ga kenkey is more common in most parts of Ghana. Ice kenkey is a meal made from kenkey mixed with water, sugar, powdered milk, and ice.

Gallery

Ga_Kenkey.jpg , Ghana kenkey Ga_Kenkey_%26_Shrimps.jpg , Ga kenkey with shrimp Ga_Kenkey_with_Pepper.jpg , Ga kenkey with pepper and beans

References

External links

"West Africa Recipe - Cooking Kenkey"
. West Africa Secondary School, Accra, Ghana. PBS Kids.

Food-info.net. Wageningen University, The Netherlands. * Fran Osseo-Asare (March 28, 2007)

Betumi.com.
"Studies on kenkey : a food product made from corn in Ghana"
*Acceleration of the fermentation of kenkey, an indigenous fermented maize food of Ghana. *Microbiological and Aromatic Characteristics of Fermented Maize Doughs for Kenkey Production in Ghana. *Nutrient Content and Survival of Selected Pathogenic Bacteria in Kenkey Used as a Weaning Food in Ghana. {{Corn Ghanaian cuisine Ivorian cuisine Beninese cuisine Togolese cuisine Jamaican cuisine Trinidad and Tobago cuisine Guyanese cuisine Dumplings Swallows (food) Fermented foods Caribbean cuisine Maize dishes

Description

Variations

Gallery

See also

References

External links