African recipe

Ghanaian Kelewele Spiced Plantains

Name: Ghanaian Kelewele Spiced Plantains
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: African cuisines
Ingredients: 4 very ripe but firm plantains, peeled; 30 g fresh ginger, peeled and chopped; 2 garlic cloves; 1 small red onion, chopped; 1 Scotch bonnet chile, stemmed; 3 g ground cloves; 3 g ground black pepper; 5 g fine salt; 30 ml water for blending the spice paste; 1.2 L neutral oil for deep-frying; 80 g roasted peanuts for serving

Very ripe plantain cubes are coated in a pungent ginger, chile and clove paste, then fried until caramelized at the edges and served hot with roasted peanuts.

Accra and southern Ghana

Prep: 15 min
Cook: 20 min
Total: 35 min
Servings: 4

Ghanaian kelewele, caramelized ginger-and-chile plantain cubes served with roasted peanuts — **Real finished-dish photograph**Photograph by Maame1YaaSource page · Original file · CC0Cropped, resized, and compressed by Recipe Nest Vault.

Ingredients

4
very ripe but firm plantains, peeled
30 g
fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
2
garlic cloves
1
small red onion, chopped
1
Scotch bonnet chile, stemmed
3 g
ground cloves
3 g
ground black pepper
5 g
fine salt
30 ml
water for blending the spice paste
1.2 L
neutral oil for deep-frying
80 g
roasted peanuts for serving

Method

01
Cut the plantains
Cut each peeled plantain lengthwise and then into bite-size cubes. Pat the cut surfaces dry so the spice paste clings rather than slides off.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
02
Blend the aromatic paste
Blend ginger, garlic, onion, chile, cloves, black pepper, salt and water into a thick paste. Add only enough water to help the blades turn; a watery paste will not coat the fruit.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
03
Coat and briefly marinate
Toss the plantain cubes with the spice paste until every face is coated. Rest 10 minutes while heating the oil; do not leave the fruit in the paste for a long time or it can soften.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
04
Heat oil and fry until caramelized
Heat oil in a heavy pot to 175°C, keeping the pot no more than half full. Fry plantain in small batches for 3–4 minutes, turning once, until deep golden with caramelized corners and a tender centre; let the oil recover between batches.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
05
Drain and serve with peanuts
Drain on a rack or paper towel and serve hot with roasted peanuts. The plantain is sweet and soft inside, with crisp, spicy edges.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph

Practical notes

Tips

Use very ripe but still firm plantains: the peel should be mostly black and the flesh sweet, while the cut cubes still hold their corners.
Fry in small batches and let the oil return to temperature between batches so the coating browns instead of steaming.

Common mistakes

Watery spice paste slides off the plantain and makes the oil spit; grind the aromatics thick and pat the fruit dry first.
Crowding the pan drops the oil temperature and makes the outside greasy before the cubes caramelize.

Substitutions

If fresh ginger is unavailable, use a small pinch of ground ginger, but the fresh aromatic paste gives the closest flavor.
A neutral oil with a high smoke point works well; avoid strongly flavored oils that mask the ginger and pepper.

Storage

Best served hot. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours at 0–4°C and use within 2 days; re-crisp in a hot oven or air fryer.

Cultural context

Kelewele is a Ghanaian street snack particularly associated with Accra and southern Ghana. Ripe plantain is cut into small pieces and seasoned with ginger and chile; cloves, pepper and other spices vary by household. Vendors often pair it with roasted peanuts.

Sources and photo credit

This standardized method was independently rewritten after cross-checking the references below. Recipe Nest Vault does not claim that the credited photographer cooked from this exact version.

Recipe references

Kelewele, a Ghanaian snack.jpg — Photograph by Maame1Yaa; CC0.

Step illustrations: Original illustrations created by Recipe Nest Vault with OpenAI image_gen.

Back to African recipes

Ghanaian Kelewele Spiced Plantains

Ingredients

Method

Cut the plantains

Blend the aromatic paste

Coat and briefly marinate

Heat oil and fry until caramelized

Drain and serve with peanuts

Sources and photo credit

Recipe references

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