Ghana is blessed with resources – both for the pocket and for the stomach. What you prefer is based solely on who you are, what you believe in, among others. I prefer to deal first with my stomach, although others may argue that the former is the means to the latter. I have no reason and I can’t attempt to explain. I am what I am- a lover of food, a foodie.

Cambridge Dictionary defines a foodie as a person who loves food and is very interested in different kinds of food. I love food; I am very interested in different kinds of food; and therefore I am a foodie. I don’t blame me, I blame my mother and after I explain myself, you will blame her too. I grew up in an average home where choice was a luxury. We did not get to be picky, especially with food. My siblings and I ate as much as we wanted daily from what was served us, not daring to complain or to make a counter request. Typically, the average African home is like that. You eat what you are served or you attract a punch. My mother’s punch was brutal and I was no fool to let it come my way. So, I grew up like this, appreciating the smallest things that contain nutrients.

It is not hard to be a foodie in Ghana, a country with so many tribes, each having their own mouth-watering delicacies that are both pleasing to the eye and to the gut. Ghanaian foods are mainly manually-processed carbohydrate foods, usually accompanied by sumptuous stews and soups, with an added element of protein to suit one’s taste. Each tribe seems to have a little nutritive surprise for the other’s taste buds so much so that one is forced to remain at peace with his brother for the benefits of his belly. In fact, if there ever was a driving force behind Ghana’s long-known peace, I would not hesitate to point fingers at our food.

Our multiculturalism as a country has definitely played a role in making us an embodiment of peace and unity. Think of it- You fight your brother from a different tribe at your very own risk. Food is the glue that keeps us alive and together and as long as I remain an advocate for peace, I will continue to honour food the way it should. I am not saying I have a voracious appetite for food; I am no glutton. I am just a lover of food, a proud foodie.

By Juliet Agyapong