West African Images are for illustrative purposes only, may be inaccurate, and do not guarantee the presence or absence of specific ingredients. 
Serving Images are for illustrative purposes only, may be inaccurate, and do not guarantee the presence or absence of specific ingredients. Fufu
Smooth, elastic cassava-and-plantain dough with a mild, slightly tangy flavor — shaped into soft balls and dipped into rich soups for a hands-on West African feast.
No common allergens detected
Based on this recipe's ingredient list. Always verify with your own brands and labels.
Good to know
- One-pot
Matched from this dish's own ingredients and timing. Browse more: one-pot dinners
Instructions
5 steps- 1
Prep the Tubers: Peel the cassava and plantains. Cut them into equal-sized chunks and remove the woody core from the center of the cassava pieces.
- 2
Boil: Place the chunks in a large pot, cover with water, and boil over medium heat until they are completely soft and tender enough to be easily mashed (about 20-25 minutes).
- 3
Drain and Cool: Drain the water and let the chunks cool just enough to handle, but they must still be quite warm for the pounding process.
- 4
Pound: Using a traditional wooden mortar and pestle, pound the plantain chunks first until smooth, then pound the cassava. Combine them and pound together vigorously. (Alternatively, use a heavy-duty food processor or stand mixer).
- 5
Achieve Texture: Continuously fold and pound the dough until it becomes a singular, elastic, and smooth ball with absolutely no lumps. Wet your hands slightly to shape it into serving portions.
Images are for illustrative purposes only, may be inaccurate, and do not guarantee the presence or absence of specific ingredients. Listahan Family Score™
69/100
Works for many families
Score reflects how well this recipe fits a typical busy household. In the app, your Family Score is personalized to your household's allergens, kids, and pantry.
Nutrition
per serving110
Calories
1 g
Protein
29 g
Carbs
0 g
Fat
Estimated per serving. Actual values depend on the brands and portions you use.
Listahan cooking guide
Chef notes & practical guide
Technique notes, ingredient swaps, serve-alongside ideas, storage guidance, and equipment for this recipe.
Cultural context
Fufu is a soft, stretchy swallow eaten across West and Central Africa, made by pounding boiled starchy roots like cassava and plantain into a smooth dough. In Ghana it is classically a cassava-and-plantain pound, while neighboring countries use yam, cocoyam, or fermented cassava. It is never eaten alone but pinched off in small balls and dipped into rich soups like light soup, groundnut soup, or palm nut soup.
Listahan note
This version pounds boiled cassava and plantain to the proper elastic texture and treats fufu as the partner to a soup rather than a dish on its own. Modern hands can use a mixer or fufu flour to skip the pounding.
Technique cues
- Boil the roots until completely soft, since any firm core will leave lumps that pounding cannot smooth out.
- Work the dough while hot and add splashes of hot water as needed to reach a smooth, stretchy, lump-free texture.
- Pound or mix in stages, folding the dough over itself, so it develops the characteristic elastic pull.
Kitchen flow
- Parallel prep
- Cook your soup while the roots boil so both the fufu and its dipping soup are ready hot at the same moment.
- Make-ahead
- Boil the roots ahead, then pound or mix the fufu just before serving while everything is hot and most pliable.
- Leftover move
- Steam or microwave cold fufu with a splash of water to soften it, or slice and fry pieces for a different texture.
- Cleanup rhythm
- Rinse the mixer bowl or mortar immediately, since fufu dough dries rock-hard and is hard to remove once set.
Ingredient brief
Role, handling, and swap guidance for each key ingredient.
cassava
the starchy base
Purpose: Cassava gives fufu its smooth body and mild flavor and is the foundation of the Ghanaian style.
Handling: Peel thickly, remove the woody core, and boil until very soft before pounding.
Adaptation: Fufu flour or instant cassava flour reconstituted with hot water as a shortcut.
ripe or green plantain
stretch and flavor partner
Purpose: Plantain pounded with cassava adds the signature stretch and a touch of sweetness to Ghanaian fufu.
Handling: Peel, chunk, and boil alongside the cassava until soft.
Adaptation: Cocoyam or yam in place of plantain for regional variations.
water
texture control
Purpose: Hot water worked into the dough adjusts it to the right pliable, swallowable consistency.
Handling: Keep hot water at hand to add a little at a time while pounding.
Adaptation: Some of the starchy boiling water for extra body.
cocoyam or yam (optional)
regional starch variation
Purpose: Adding cocoyam or yam to the pound shifts the texture and flavor toward regional styles of fufu.
Handling: Peel, chunk, and boil with the cassava and plantain until soft.
Adaptation: Adjust the ratio of roots to suit the swallow texture you prefer.
Technique notes
- If using a stand mixer, use the dough hook in short bursts to mimic pounding without burning out the motor.
- Wet your hands and the serving spoon so the smooth ball releases without sticking.
- Serve fufu submerged in or beside its soup so it stays warm and soft until eaten.
Ingredient swaps
- Weeknight shortcut
- Use packaged fufu flour stirred hard into boiling water to get a close texture in minutes without boiling and pounding.
- All-cassava direction
- Skip the plantain for a plainer, neutral fufu that pairs with any soup.
- Lighter direction
- Use more plantain to cassava for a softer, slightly sweeter, less dense swallow.
Serve alongside
- light soup (nkrakra)
- groundnut (peanut) soup
- palm nut soup
- okra soup
- chilled palm wine
- ginger beer
- cold water as is traditional with soup
Serving suggestions only — check pairings for your household's allergens.
Storage & reheating
- Best eaten fresh and hot. Refrigerate wrapped tightly for up to two days and reheat by steaming or microwaving with a little water to restore softness. Fufu does not freeze well, so make only what you will eat.
Equipment
- large pot for boiling
- stand mixer with dough hook or mortar and pestle
- sturdy wooden spoon
- bowl of hot water for hands
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