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Yele Kakro (Ghanaian Yam Balls)
Mashed boiled yam mixed with a quick tomato and onion sauce, egg, thyme and ground red pepper, rolled into balls and deep-fried golden, served hot with shito.
Ghanaian · medium · serves 6
prep 25 min · cook 45 min
~318 cal · 6g protein · 50g carbs · 11g fat · 7g fiber · 3g sugars · 2g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Yele kakro are Ghanaian yam balls: boiled yam mashed while warm, seasoned with tomato, onion, thyme and ground red pepper, bound with egg and deep-fried until crisp and golden. Yam is one of Ghana's great staples, grown across the forest and the middle belt, and yam balls are one of the tastiest things done with it.
They are party food above all. At Ghanaian parties they are served mostly as appetisers, a plate passed round before the jollof and the main dishes arrive, and they also turn up as a snack and as a side at the family table. They are eaten warm with a spoonful of shito, the dark, fiery pepper sauce, or a hot tomato sauce.
This version follows the recipe on Betumi, Fran Osseo-Asare's long-running blog on Ghanaian cooking, with half the tomato and onion cooked into a quick sauce and half stirred in raw for freshness. Some cooks add a little corned beef or sardines, or roll the balls in breadcrumbs.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally vegetarian and dairy-, nut- 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
- 900 g (2 lb) white African yam (puna yam), peeled and cut into small chunks
- 3 medium ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded and finely chopped
- 1 large onion, minced
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil, for the sauce, plus 3 to 4 cups for deep frying
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 1/2 to 1 tsp ground dried red pepper
- 1/2 tsp salt, plus more for the cooking water
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 3 tbsp plain flour, for dusting
Instructions
- 1Boil the yam in salted water for 20 to 30 minutes, until very soft. Drain it well.
- 2While the yam cooks, heat the 1/4 cup oil in a frying pan over medium heat, cook half the onion for 2 minutes, then add half the tomatoes and cook for 3 minutes more, until soft but not browned. Stir in the thyme, salt and red pepper.
- 3Mash the yam while it is still warm until there are no lumps. Mix in the cooked sauce, the rest of the raw onion and tomato and the beaten eggs.
- 4Heat the frying oil in a deep, heavy pan to 190°C (375°F). With floured hands, roll heaped spoonfuls of the mixture into balls a little smaller than a golf ball.
- 5Fry a few at a time for 3 to 4 minutes, turning, until golden brown all over. Drain on paper and serve warm with shito or a hot tomato sauce.✎ Chef’s noteIf the first ball falls apart in the oil, work another spoonful of flour into the mixture.
After Fran Osseo-Asare (Betumi), Ghanaian home and party tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Ashanti. Fufu is made rather than cooked. Boiled cassava and plantain go into a wooden mortar and are pounded in a two-person rhythm, one striking and one turning the mass between blows, until it is smooth and elastic enough to swallow in pieces. The soup is what carries the flavour; the fufu is the vehicle, and it is not chewed.
🗺️
Ghana. Most eating out happens in a chop bar, the informal southern eating house where chop is Ghanaian pidgin for eat. A few dishes are cooked in quantity each morning, fufu, banku, konkonte or rice balls, each with the soup that belongs to it, and they are served in local earthenware bowls to be eaten on the spot.
🌍
Africa. Africa's fifty-four nations hold cuisines as different as Morocco's slow-cooked tagines and South Africa's open-fire braai, yet shared threads run through them: ancient grains like millet, sorghum, and teff; stews thickened with groundnut, okra, or palm; and fiery condiments from Tunisian harissa to Ethiopian berbere. Staple starches, fufu, injera, ugali, couscous, anchor communal meals often eaten by hand from a shared dish, where hospitality is a point of honor.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Ghana
Nkatenkwan (Groundnut Soup)A silky, gingery peanut soup simmered with chicken and chilies, eaten with soft rice balls.
Red RedBlack-eyed peas stewed in red palm oil beside caramelized fried plantains, named twice for its two shades of red.
Hausa Koko and KooseA spiced fermented millet porridge with koose, crisp black-eyed pea fritters, Ghana's classic Ghanaian breakfast.
Browse all Ghana recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Skillet or frying pan.
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.
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Cuisine
Diet
Frequently asked questions
What is Yele Kakro (Ghanaian Yam Balls)?
Mashed boiled yam mixed with a quick tomato and onion sauce, egg, thyme and ground red pepper, rolled into balls and deep-fried golden, served hot with shito.
Where does Yele Kakro (Ghanaian Yam Balls) come from?
Yele Kakro (Ghanaian Yam Balls) is a Ghanaian dish from Ashanti, Ghana.
Can Yele Kakro (Ghanaian Yam Balls) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Yele Kakro (Ghanaian Yam Balls) 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 Yele Kakro (Ghanaian Yam Balls) 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 Yele Kakro (Ghanaian Yam Balls) take to make?
About 70 minutes total (25 minutes prep, 45 minutes cooking), serving 6.
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