Cheeses of Parakou
A market city of northern Benin, the main trading place for wagasi, the Fulani cheese set with plant juice and dyed red.
Made, aged and sold here
Best time: November to February, the dry season.
Parakou is the largest city in northern Benin, a crossroads of roads and trade in the savanna. Fulani herders in the surrounding Borgou region make wagasi, a soft cow's milk cheese, and Parakou's markets sell it in great quantity. Rounds of wagasi, some with a red rind, are stacked on trays and carried to markets across Benin and its neighbours.
Wagasi
Wagasi is made by heating fresh cow's milk and setting it with the juice of the leaves of Calotropis procera, the sodom apple, a plant-based coagulant. The curd is shaped in small baskets and drained. Some wagasi is boiled in water coloured with sorghum leaf sheaths, which gives a red outside. It is mild and soft and is usually fried or cooked in a sauce.
The city and the savanna
Parakou lies on the railway and the road north to Niger, and its markets draw traders from Benin, Nigeria and Togo. In the kitchens of the region, wagasi is fried and served with a tomato and chilli sauce, or cooked into stews eaten with pounded yam or a stiff porridge of maize or millet.
A trail idea for Parakou
- Parakou central market Look for wagasi stacked on trays, white and red.
- A street food stall Try fried wagasi with a hot tomato sauce.
- Fulani villages Visit herding communities of the Borgou with a local guide.
- Pendjari National Park The savanna park further north.
Written by the EveryCheese desk with AI assistance. Background: "Parakou" on Wikipedia. Opening hours, markets, caves and tours change; check locally before travelling. If something is wrong, tell us.
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