🍢 SNACK
Accra Banana (Cameroonian Banana and Cassava Fritters)
Overripe bananas mashed with squeezed grated cassava and a little salt, rolled into small balls and deep-fried until crunchy and deep gold outside and soft inside.
Cameroonian · easy · serves 6
prep 25 min · cook 30 min
~284 cal · 3g protein · 68g carbs · 0g fat · 5g fiber · 9g sugars · 0g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Accra banana is one of Cameroon's favourite street snacks, sold hot from roadside pots and made at home whenever the bananas on the counter have gone soft and black-spotted. It is eaten in the afternoon or at night, with a cup of tea or coffee in the morning, or at parties, often with a spoon of hot pepper sauce on the side.
The name comes from the fritter family that runs down the West African coast, but the Cameroonian version leans on . Grated raw is squeezed in a cloth to press out its liquid, then worked into mashed overripe bananas with salt until the mixture is firm enough to roll. Some cooks add a little garri or cornmeal to firm it up, and it is sometimes called accra .
In the oil the balls turn a deep brown, crunchy outside and tender and slightly chewy in the middle, sweet from the bananas and salty at the same time.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally vegetarian, vegan and gluten-, dairy-, nut-, egg- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 6
- 700 g grated raw , freshly grated, or frozen grated cassava, thawed
- 3 large very ripe bananas, peeled, the blacker the skins, the sweeter the accra
- 1/2 cup garri or fine cornmeal, optional, only if the mixture is too soft to roll
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 litre vegetable oil, for deep-frying
Instructions
- 1Put the grated cassava in a clean kitchen cloth or cheesecloth and twist and squeeze hard to press out as much liquid as you can.✎ Chef’s noteThe drier the cassava, the crunchier the fritters and the less they spit in the oil.
- 2Mash the bananas to a smooth paste with a fork or potato masher. Add the squeezed cassava and the salt and mix well. If the mixture is too soft to hold a ball, work in the garri or cornmeal a spoonful at a time.
- 3Heat the oil in a deep pan or pot to 180C (350F). A cube of bread dropped in should brown in about a minute.
- 4With wet hands, roll heaped tablespoons of the mixture into balls and slide them gently into the oil, a batch at a time without crowding the pan.
- 5Fry for 8 to 10 minutes, turning now and then, until deep golden brown all over. Lift out, drain on paper, and repeat with the rest. Serve hot, with pepper sauce if you like.
Cameroonian street-food tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Littoral (Douala). The evening trade in Douala is grilled fish. A whole mackerel or bar is split open, rubbed with a paste of garlic, ginger, parsley and hot pepper and laid over coals at a roadside stand, then served with baton de manioc or fried plantain and a sharp raw onion and lemon relish.
🗺️
Cameroon. Cameroon is called 'Africa in miniature,' and its food is just as varied, ndolé (bitterleaf and peanut stew), grilled fish, and fufu-style staples from plantain to cassava. Palm oil, groundnut, and fiery pepper define the plate.
🌍
Africa. The structure repeats across most of the continent: one starch and one sauce. A grain or root is cooked stiff, torn or rolled by hand, and used to carry a stew of leaves, groundnut, okra or fish, usually from a shared bowl and with the right hand. UNESCO listings have followed that logic, inscribing couscous in 2020 as a shared Maghreb tradition and Ivorian attieke in 2024.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Cameroon
NdoléCameroon’s national dish: bitterleaf greens simmered with ground peanuts, beef, and shrimp into a deep, satisfying stew.
Puff-Puff and BeansSweet fried dough balls served with a savory stewed bean pot, a filling Cameroonian breakfast.
Poulet DGFried chicken and sweet plantain simmered with peppers and vegetables in a rich tomato sauce, a Cameroonian celebration favorite.
Browse all Cameroon recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Pot or saucepan, Blender.
Storing it: Fried food is best eaten fresh while crisp. Re-crisp leftovers in a hot oven or air fryer; the microwave makes them soft.
Make it a Cameroon meal
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Cameroonian Banana CakeDessert
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Frequently asked questions
What is Accra Banana (Cameroonian Banana and Cassava Fritters)?
Overripe bananas mashed with squeezed grated cassava and a little salt, rolled into small balls and deep-fried until crunchy and deep gold outside and soft inside.
Where does Accra Banana (Cameroonian Banana and Cassava Fritters) come from?
Accra Banana (Cameroonian Banana and Cassava Fritters) is a Cameroonian dish from Littoral (Douala), Cameroon.
Can Accra Banana (Cameroonian Banana and Cassava Fritters) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Accra Banana (Cameroonian Banana and Cassava Fritters) recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions. Treat the substitutions as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Accra Banana (Cameroonian Banana and Cassava Fritters) safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we still count coconut as a tree nut to be cautious, although the FDA stopped listing it as one in 2025), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Accra Banana (Cameroonian Banana and Cassava Fritters) take to make?
About 55 minutes total (25 minutes prep, 30 minutes cooking), serving 6.
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