ABEIKU SANTANA PROMOTES GASTRONOMY AS A NEW TOURISM PRODUCT AT GHANA-NIGERIA JOLLOF FACEOFF
The ‘Jollof Face-off’ between Ghana and Nigeria was held over the weekend at Ohuru by HSE boardroom apartments in Lekki Peninsula II, Lagos with the winner taking home a cash prize of $5000 and bragging rights.
Four individuals with backgrounds in the area of Music, Tourism, Media, Culinary arts and brand influencing were selected as the cooking contest’s panel of judges. They were Nigeria’s Don Jazzy, Mukase Chic, Sisi Yemmie and Ghanaian ace broadcaster and tourism Ambassador Abeiku Santana aka Mr Tourism as he’s affectionately called.
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Abeiku Santana praised the organisers and his co-judges alike, highlighting the competition as a great tourism project in the area of Gastronomy and the added benefits it brings the participating nations who are known to share a bitter-sweet rivalry in the world of gastronomy and sports, with soccer and jollof rice fueling this never ending love relationship between Ghana and Nigeria.
He explained gastronomy and differentiated it from culinary, saying it is a “heritage and cultural product that uses the major cooking methods and techniques with emphasis on nutrition, palatability, applications of taste and tradition.” Abeiku encouraged Ghana and Nigeria Tourism stakeholders to pay attention to the sector as it is a major economic booster.
The judges scored the contestants based on plating, texture, taste, side dish and accompanied protein choice for their presentations.
Hilda Bassey, a multi-talented television cooking show host came face to face with Seyram Leslie Kumordzie, a private Lawyer from Ghana. Bassey, a regular feature on several shows and the host of ‘Dine of a Budget’ on Dstv emerged the winner, taking home the coveted US$5k prize money for the competition.
Nigerians on social media particularly Instagram did not hide their joy as their representative clinched the ultimate reward.The debate for the best jollof rice has been ongoing between Ghana and Nigeria for some time and has also gained a global attention from people from all walks of life.
The Ghanaians on the other side have asked for a re-match in Ghana and that promises to be a great showdown to look out for. This competition was powered by Vfd Microfinance Bank Bank and supported by Afripay, Maggi, Ohuru by HSE and Cellar Central.
Filed report courtesy Rhymesonny
Oral Ofori is Founder and Publisher at www.TheAfricanDream.net, a digital storyteller and producer, and also an information and research consultant.
