akassa — Benin

Akassa is a soft, pale paste made from maize that has been soaked, fermented and cooked until it sets into a smooth, faintly sour dough. In Benin it belongs to the family of fermented corn staples eaten across the Gulf of Guinea, alongside cousins such as ogi or akpan, and is known in the Fon language as "gui". It is reported mainly from the south of the country, in Fon-speaking communities around Cotonou, Abomey and Ouidah, where it is sold in local markets wrapped in small leaf parcels and eaten at any time of day, often as a quick midday meal bought ready-made from a market stall. To prepare it, dried white corn is soaked for one or two days until it starts to ferment, then ground into a fine paste and passed through a sieve with water to remove the husks. The strained liquid is left to settle, and the starch that collects at the bottom is cooked over low heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens into a smooth, elastic dough. The hot paste is then wrapped in banana or other broad leaves and left to finish setting as it cools. In this part of Benin, akassa is typically served cold or at room temperature, cut into pieces and dipped into a sauce built around tomato, onion, chilli and dried or fresh fish, sometimes enriched with crab or shrimp; a peanut-based sauce is another common pairing. The leaf wrapping, the degree of sourness and the choice of sauce vary from one household or market seller to another.