How to make Nkate Cake
A tasty Ghanaian snack, made with groundnuts (peanuts) and sugar and very similar to peanut brittle.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 200 grams groundnuts or peanuts unsalted, roasted and peeled
- 200 grams granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon neutral-tasting vegetable oil for wooden board and rolling pin
Instructions
- Place the groundnuts in a Ziploc bag and break them into smaller pieces with a rolling pin. If you have a food processor you can use the pulse function. See notes 1.
- Pour the oil on the board and rub it all over. Oil the rolling pin as well. See notes 2.
- In a heavy bottom pan, melt the sugar over low heat until all the sugar is dissolved and the colour is caramel. See notes 3.
- Add the crushed groundnuts to the caramel and stir quickly until both are properly combined.
- Immediately turn the nkate cake on the oiled board and shape it into a rectangle, making sure to work quickly. See notes 4.
- Using a sharp knife, divide the rectangle into diagonals and leave it to cool.
- Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- You can also leave the groundnuts whole or crush them slightly.
- This is necessary so that the nkate cake does not stick to the board or the rolling pin.
- While melting or dissolving the sugar, if possible, do not move the sugar around too much until most of it has dissolved. The problem with stirring it too much is that it can form clumps. This in turn means while some of the sugar is dissolved and already turning brown, the other bit is still hard and undissolved.
- Work on the nkate cake while it is hot. Once it turns cold it is impossible to cut it into shape.
- If you find the ratio of sugar to groundnut too much, you can increase the number of groundnuts. A ratio of 1:1.6 (so for instance 100 grams of sugar to 160 grams) of sugar works very well too. My personal preference is a 1:1 ratio.