The Ghanaian street-food dish made from fried yam served with spicy pepper sauce is commonly called yam chips.
Yam chips are prepared by cutting yam into thick batons, frying the pieces until golden, and serving them with a hot pepper sauce. In Ghana, roadside vendors often sell them as a filling snack or quick meal, sometimes alongside fried fish, chicken, or sausages. The sauce may contain fresh peppers, tomatoes, onions, and seasonings.
The dish uses true yam, a starchy tropical tuber, rather than sweet potato. That distinction matters because the two are frequently mislabeled in international markets. Ghanaian yam varieties can have a firm, dry texture that works well for frying.
Yam chips are part of Ghana’s broader fried-street-food culture, which also includes kelewele, or spiced fried plantain. Kelewele is sweeter and softer, while yam chips are more neutral and substantial, making the pepper sauce especially important to the finished dish.