Nyadowa: Ghanaian Garden Egg Stew

When I initially knew I was coming to Ghana, I was a bit concerned about food options. Vegetarianism is extremely easy in the United States and in this regard I am spoiled. Since I had never been to Ghana before, I was unsure whether or not being a vegetarian was feasible. Of course, I want to continue being a vegetarian for a plethora of reasons (health, animal rights, etc.) however, I also want to make sure to be understanding, polite and learn as much as I can from the Ghanaian culture.

After speaking to my host counselor, Past President Yvonne, I realized that I am in luck! Although not extremely common, there are vegetarians in Ghana, and whats more– there are some AMAZING Ghanaian dishes that are vegetarian! So for my veggie friends back home here is a recipe for you:

Nyadowa: Ghanaian Garden Egg Stew:

You will need:

• 8 small tomatoes
• 5 fresh peppers
• 1 medium onion
• 2-4 tbsp oil
• Maggi Cubes (Spice cube)
• 2 fresh eggs
• 1 tsp garlic
• tomato puree

Directions:

1.  Slice onions, put oil on fire
2. Dice 4 tomatoes and add to fire, put tomato peel down for blending, add 1/2 onion to mixture on fire
3. Blend 4 tomatoes, 1/2 onion, 4 peppers
4. Add blended veggies to tomato mix, and a heaping tsp of tomato puree
5. Simmer it down, crumble 2 Maggi Cubes and a dash of spices (ie. worchestire, soy sauce, curry, garlic, etc.)
6. Add 1/4 coffee mug of water
7. Wait for bubbles to disperse (this means the water has evaporated from the oil in the mixture) and then crack in 2 eggs.
8. Garnish with sliced onions

Here are some photos of the finished masterpiece!

This makes my mouth run water! I wish you had the ability to send smell and taste through a computer screen!

So if you’re looking for a delicious hearty and healthy meal look no further than Garden Egg Stew! Not only is it fantastic; it’s easy too! Yvonne and I made this in about half an hour, and I am pretty confident I could recreate our stew! Also, the best thing to serve Nyadowa with is boiled plantains or yams, but if you’re not able to get those, try some rice!

Enjoy!