akassa — Burkina Faso

Akassa is a smooth, mildly sour paste made from fermented and cooked maize, part of a family of fermented corn staples found across West Africa under names such as ogi or gui. In Burkina Faso it is eaten as an everyday starch, most often bought ready-made rather than cooked at home. It is reported from towns and markets across the country, where sellers prepare it in bulk and wrap it into small parcels for sale; it travels well and keeps for a day or two, which makes it convenient for workers and travellers who buy it as a midday meal. The dried corn is soaked until it softens and starts to ferment, then ground and sieved with water to remove the bran. The strained starch is left to settle, then cooked over low heat while stirring, until it becomes a thick, elastic paste. It is portioned while still hot and wrapped, often in leaves or plastic film, to cool and firm up before sale. In Burkina Faso the paste is commonly paired with a sauce built from leafy greens such as baobab leaves or okra, cooked down with onion, tomato and a little dried fish or peanut paste, giving a slightly mucilaginous, savoury sauce that contrasts with the mild tang of the corn; some cooks favour a plain groundnut sauce instead.