Red Red (Ghanaian Bean Stew)

Updated on April 7th, 2023. Originally posted on April 4th, 2021. (Video and Recipe both have been updated)

Hello there!

If you have read my previous post (if not, go ahead and click here darling), you now know that I traveled to Ghana two weeks ago to fulfill my duties as a witness to my bestie’s very intimate wedding.

While in Ghana I had the pleasure of eating all the dishes I didn’t manage to eat during my first trip in 2018: yes, I took it as a mission to come back to Romania with +2kg.

Today’s dish is one of my new favorite Ghanaian dishes: Red Red, also known as Ghanaian Bean Stew.

I’m a big fan of bean stews because, even though they’re usually quite basic, they’re still very rich in flavor, plus they’re easy to make and they are also budget-friendly, so you already know I’m all for it.

I really like Red Red because it can be eaten at any time of the day (breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner) and it can be served alone or with plantains, cassava, yams and even rice… Versatile much?!

The name Red Red comes from the color of the oil used in the recipe: palm oil. I know what the media (Western media) have said about palm oil over the past 10 years and defending palm oil is a hill I will die on lol. No seriously, like for most areas in life, quality and moderation is the key!

If you live outside of Africa or Asia, all the spices and ingredients used in this recipe can be easily found at every grocery store with the exception of ground crayfish and toasted cassava (the cassava is optional though); no worries, you can find them at your local “ethnic store”. I particularly insist on the dried crayfish because I see it as a game changer in every recipe, it adds that je ne sais quoi mixed with a slight smokey flavor that cannot easily be replaced… so, yeah, go get it, you won’t be disappointed!

Without further ado, here’s the recipe.

Bon Appetit!