These savoury sweet cassava fritters/doughnuts are a feature of Ghanaian street food. When I say sweet cassava what I mean is that they have low cyanogenic glycoside content and can be baked or fried without the need for lengthy soaking. Typically they’re served with pieces of coconut.
Prep time: 20 minutes/Cook time: 15 minutes/Makes: 45
Ingredients:
1 large tuber sweet cassava
2/3 red onion, finely chopped
1/4 brown onion
2 tsp salt
oil for deep frying
Method:
Peel the cassava, cut into pieces, remove the woody core then place the pieces in a large bowl of water. Once all the cassava has been prepared, finely grate the pieces.
Once the cassava has all been grated, transfer to a clean tea towel then wring out all the excess liquid. You may find it easier to do this in batches.
Place oil to a depth of 5cm (2 in) in a wok or deep pan. Whilst the oil is heating up, prepare the agbeli kaaklo.
Finely grate the brown onion into a bowl then scatter over the wrung-out cassava. Sprinkle over the salt then mix well to combine. Now sprinkle over the chopped red onion and, once again, mix to combine.
Take a handful of the mixture and press into balls. Transfer to a plate, then continue shaping the remainder of the mixture.
By this time your oil should be hot, so carefully drop in the cassava mixture balls. Don’t over crowd the pan, as this will make the oil temperature drop too low, making your fritters greasy. After 3-4 minutes flip the agbeli kaaklo over and cook on the other side for 3-4 minutes. When done, they will be nicely golden brown all over and cooked through.
Transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper to drain as you cook the next batch. Serve hot, accompanied by pieces of coconut.
