“LIFE BEGINS AT THE END OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE.”

Let me just put it out there that I am living my best life and this girl is loving every bit of it. A little back story, I started a new job with an amazing team a little over a month ago and it has opened me up to trying new things as work is done agile and I have typically worked the traditional way literally throughout my entire career journey.

As we recently established a physical office, we have cultivated a tradition of doing team lunches and dinner as often as possible and my oh my, it has been an amazing experience so far. As someone who always goes with the safe choice especially with regards to food, I must say I have missed out and I am making up for it. I typically enjoy my local delicacies like Waakye with lots of the ‘’Ghanaian waakye salad’’, spaghetti, fried ripe plantain, a variety of proteins like fish, egg, chicken and even beef or pork with a few slices of avocado. Yes! All in one sitting. Go ahead! Go on… Say it! I LOVE FOOD! There I said it!

However, one lunch break at a restaurant next door (JamesTown Coffee Co.), I skeptically tried a senegalese dish called Poulet Yassa or Chicken Yassa and let me tell you, IT IS DIVINE! AMAZING! DELICIOUS! 3Y3 D3! As people say in the local Ghanaian dialect, Twi.

The caramelised onions, the sauce, the tender chicken…with the green habanero pepper sauce to satisfy my Ghanaian tongue’s urge for spice …. MMMM… I could literally taste it at the back of my throat right now. Some say it's a long process meal for such a simple dish yet it tastes so good.?

I typically have yassa chicken with white rice, but this African stew is great with a lot of food. Try it on roast potatoes, pasta, couscous – anything you’ll eat with a sauce really; and you’re good to go. But who really has just one single plate of Poulet yassa at a sitting? Definitely not me!? I would love to recommend a recipe however, I do not want to impose. So a simple google search on chicken yassa recipe and viola, you will surely thank me later.

I think this experience has opened me up to trying new things. Come to think of it, I even tried Macha tea! In all my 25 years of living, I think I am now actually exploring, embracing other cultures and stepping out of my comfort zone. Now I want to try other foods, explore new places, travel around and see the world. Playing safe is good but what's the fun in that!

Written by: Lois Nutsugah (Project and Account Manager at Curl Agency)