Mpaka or Poko: Bono’s Hidden Gem of Traditional Cooking

While ampesi is widely known across Ghana as boiled yam, plantain, cassava or cocoyam served with stew or pepper sauce, the Bono Region has a lesser-known traditional variation that offers a distinctly rustic and flavorful experience.

Known locally as “mpaka” or “poko,” the dish involves cooking yam, plantain or cocoyam without peeling the produce first. The food is thoroughly washed and boiled with its skin intact, with the peel removed only after the produce has been fully cooked.

The traditional cooking method has long been associated with farming communities in the Bono Region, where freshly harvested crops could be taken from the farm and placed directly into a pot after the soil had been cleaned from them.

A simple method with a distinct taste

Unlike conventional ampesi, where the food is peeled before boiling, mpaka allows the natural skin of the crop to remain during cooking.

The peel serves as a protective layer around the flesh, helping to limit excessive contact with the cooking water. Traditional cooks and consumers often say this results in food that is firm, fluffy and naturally sweet, with a richer taste and texture.

The practice is also believed to help preserve some nutrients that could otherwise be lost in cooking water, although the nutritional impact depends on the particular crop and cooking method.

For generations, the simplicity of mpaka made it particularly convenient for farmers. During busy farming periods, there was little need for elaborate preparation. Fresh yam, cocoyam or plantain could be washed, boiled over a wood fire and peeled once ready.

The cooked peel generally comes away more easily, revealing the soft, steaming food underneath.

Popular sauces and accompaniments

Like other forms of ampesi, mpaka is rarely eaten by itself.

One of its popular accompaniments is kontomire stew, prepared with cocoyam leaves, palm oil, onions, tomatoes, and smoked fish, with eggs or meat sometimes added.

Garden egg stew is another traditional pairing, offering a smoky and savoury flavour that complements the natural sweetness of boiled yam or plantain.

Depending on household preference, mpaka may also be served with palm nut soup, light soup, groundnut soup or freshly prepared pepper sauce made from tomatoes, onions, fresh chilli and local spices.

Smoked fish, salted fish, boiled eggs, avocado and grilled meat can also be added to create a more substantial meal.

The fun of peeling after cooking

Beyond its taste, mpaka comes with a small but memorable eating ritual: peeling the food after it has been cooked.

Experienced eaters can sometimes remove the skin in one long strip, almost like taking off a glove. For children and less experienced eaters, however, the process can be considerably messier, with small pieces of peel sticking to their hands and even between their teeth.

The dish is also often eaten while still steaming hot. Someone may eagerly pick up a piece immediately after it comes out of the pot, transfer it from one hand to another, blow on it repeatedly and eventually take a bite—only to start searching for water after discovering that it is still too hot.

Such moments have helped make mpaka more than just food. In many homes, it is part of the family experience surrounding traditional meals.

A meal rooted in Bono farming culture

Mpaka reflects the close relationship between food and farming traditions in the Bono Region.

The cooking method requires minimal preparation and allows freshly harvested produce to retain much of its natural character. For families accustomed to eating food directly from their farms, cooking crops in their skins was both practical and satisfying.

Many older people continue to maintain that freshly harvested yam, cocoyam or plantain cooked in its peel has a distinctive taste that is difficult to reproduce through more elaborate cooking methods.

An overlooked Ghanaian food tradition

Ghanaian cuisine is often represented internationally by popular dishes such as fufu, jollof, banku and other widely recognised meals. Yet traditional foods such as mpaka demonstrate the diversity that exists within Ghana’s regional culinary traditions.

For visitors exploring Bono cuisine, mpaka or poko provides an opportunity to experience locally grown produce in a simple and traditional form.

Its appeal lies not in complicated ingredients or elaborate presentation, but in the quality of the produce, the traditional cooking method and the cultural experience surrounding the meal.

Ultimately, mpaka represents a culinary philosophy built around simplicity, patience and respect for fresh ingredients.

The lesson behind the dish is perhaps as traditional as the meal itself: peeling the food too early only creates unnecessary work. Wait until it is properly cooked, and the skin practically removes itself.

For many Bono families, that simple approach is what makes mpaka or poko a treasured part of traditional cooking.