sierra Leone street food
Black-eyed beans, known as binch, are a staple in Sierra Leone, providing a welcome change of pace from the myriad leafy stews and nutty soups. Often served with boiled plantains, gari (shredded fermented cassava), or yams-with a hefty helping of palm oil, of course-these beans are especially popular for breakfast. Sweet little snacks, called cakes here, are popular street foods in any Salone city or market. They’re sold by mobile (walking, that is) vendors, typically in clear plastic containers carried atop their heads. Some common ones include doughnut cakes (beignet-like fritters), banana cakes (banana fritters), coconut and ginger cakes, benni cakes (made with sesame seed), and groundnut cakes (like peanut brittle), and these are in addition to the more savory rice and binch akaras, also little fritters. Our favorite of all the sweet cakes, though, is the biscuit-like King Driver, pictured. Why this cake is known by some as “Kill Driver” may depend on whom you ask, but the story we heard is it’s so sweet and heavy that if a driver
6 сен 2024
