Akara
Akara (Yoruba: àkàrà; Portuguese: acarajé, pronounced [akaɾaˈʒɛ] ) is a type of fritter made from cowpeas or beans (black-eyed peas) originated in Yorubaland, from the Yoruba ethnic group inhabiting parts of Nigeria, Benin and Togo. It is known as "bean cake" in English. It is found throughout West African, Caribbean, and Brazilian cuisines. The dish is traditionally encountered in Brazil's northeastern state of Bahia, especially in the city of Salvador. The dish was brought by enslaved Yoruba citizens from West Africa, and can still be found in various forms in Nigeria, Benin and Togo.
Akara is made from peeled beans (black-eyed peas), washed and ground with pepper, onions and other preferred seasonings, then beaten to aerate them, and deep-fried in small balls. Egg is an option added in some akara recipes into the batter.Akara is usually fried in vegetable oil (Ororo). It also has a version fried in palm oil (Epo), which is called akara kengbe or akara elepo, though vegetable oil fried akara is the more common between both as street food in Nigeria. Akara Osu is another variant of Akara, from Osu town, fried in palm oil or vegetable oil, can be paler in colour than regular akara, lighter, puffy and dainty, with shrimp and whole prawns (Ede) in it.
Brazilian acarajé is made from raw and milled cowpeas that are seasoned with salt, pepper and chopped onions molded into the shape of a large scone and deep-fried in dendê with a wok-like pan in front of the customers. It is served split in half and stuffed with vatapá and caruru – spicy pastes made from shrimp, ground cashews, palm oil and other ingredients. A vegetarian version is typically served with hot peppers and green tomatoes. Acarajé can also comes in a second form called abará, in which the nutritious ingredients are steamed instead of deep-fried, similar to moi moi.
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