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Homowo Festival Dish · Steamed Corn & Palm Oil

Kpokpoi (Kpekple)

Kpokpoi (Kpekple) — street food from Accra, Ghana
Photo: Nii Ashiloh / Wikimedia Commons · CC0

During Homowo, kpokpoi isn't just eaten — it's ritually sprinkled around Ga homes and compounds as a symbolic act of "hooting at hunger," the literal meaning of the word Homowo.

Steamed, lightly fermented corn meal is mixed with palm oil until soft and slightly grainy, then served with palm-nut soup, smoked fish, and okra.

Why it's made this way: Kpokpoi is the ceremonial centerpiece of Homowo, the Ga festival marking a historic triumph over famine, and its sprinkling and shared eating symbolize unity and thanksgiving.
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Part of World of Street Food — 3248 dishes from 118 countries. Something wrong here? Tell us in the comments below. Photo credits.