Brian Nagele
Kenyan foods are delicious and unique to different communities.
A staple that you’ll find in almost all households is Ugali or corn flour meals. Meats, vegetables, and grains are additional constituents prepared as accompaniments in most dishes.
Each community prides itself on its prowess at preparing particular meals. It’s Githeri and Irio for the Kikuyu, Matoke for the Kisii, Fish for the Luo, and mouthwatering seafood and Pilau from the coastal community.
Curious about what Kenyans love eating? Below are the top 22 favorite Kenyan foods you should try.
Chapati is one of Kenya’s favorite meals.
It’s a flatbread prepared by mixing wheat flour, sugar, salt, and oil to make a soft dough.
The sweet aroma of ready chapati is hard to miss. Chapatis taste best if served with bean stew, meat stew, green veggies, or tea.
Chips Mayai is a mixture of French fries and eggs.
Cooked fries are put in a heated pan with a bit of oil and a generous amount of beaten egg poured on top.
The cook turns the mixture until the fries are well coated with cooked egg. Take your Chips Mayai with chili or tomato sauce for added flavor.
The Kikuyu people from Central Kenya love preparing Githeri. However, anyone can savor this delectable dish in restaurants and just as quickly prepare it home.
Githeri is a tasty fried stew made from beans and maize/corn. Some like to add potatoes or meat to create a single rich meal.
For more flavor, spices like cayenne pepper, turmeric, cumin, and coriander may be added to the mix.
Another gem from Kenya’s central region is Irio, a popular Kenyan dish made from mashed potatoes, maize, and beans or peas. It’s delicious.
The dish is adequate on its own, but many prefer to take it with beef stew or fried green veggies on the side.
Kachumbari is a salad occasionally served as a side dish along with roast meat, fish, and other meats.
It combines fresh tomatoes, onions, cilantro, and chili peppers. Some may add a bit of salt and black pepper to their Kachumbari.
Add avocado to your Kachumbari to make Guacamole to complement almost any fried dish you like.
Popular in Kenya’s Coastal area, Kuku Paka, also known as Kuku na nazi, is coconut curry sauce with chicken.
It’s a sweet dish that shows the Arabic and Indian influence in this region.
Char-grilled chicken is mixed into coconut curry sauce for a mouthwatering treat. Instead of chicken, meats like shrimp or fish could suffice.
Beans in Swahili, Kenya’s national language, is Maharagwe.
There are many types of beans in Kenya, but when you order Maharagwe, the server assumes you’re asking for red kidney beans.
Beans are prepared and made into a stew that’s an excellent side dish with Chapati, white rice, or Ugali.
Served for breakfast, Mandazi is the welcome alternative for bread that Kenyans take with their morning tea.
Mandazis are made from sugary dough infused with coconut milk and cardamom. Mandazis are pretty similar in taste compared to donuts.
Matoke is Swahili for plantain. Unripe bananas are skinned, mashed, and served with green veggies and beef stew to make Matoke.
I prefer preparing the plantain by slicing them into smaller pieces, adding potatoes, and frying with onions and tomatoes to make a stew.
I may take my Matoke as a whole meal or add fried meat on the side.
Next to corn/maize, rice is the second most revered meal in Kenya. Thus, Pilau is one of the best ways to enjoy a rice meal.
Pilau is prepared on special occasions like birthdays, weddings, graduations, Christmas, Eid, etc.
Pilau is rich in flavor and features a wide array of spices. It resembles Nigeria’s Jollof rice.
Everyone loves Nyama Choma! Some may argue that Nyama Choma and not Ugali is Kenya’s national dish. All I know is that the two go well together.
Nyama Choma is roasted meat, with goat being the meat of choice, but beef can do.
Nyama Choma is an ever-present delicacy that people almost scramble for.
Mukimo is quite similar to Irio. Both dishes are from communities like the Kikuyu, Embu, Masai, and Ameru from Central Kenya.
Irio is a mixture of mashed potatoes, maize, and peas. On the other hand, Mukimo is a mixture of mashed potatoes and maize, but you can use different types of beans.
Hailing from the Indian and coastal communities in Kenya, samosas are a favorite snack that few dare turn down.
They are triangular pockets with seasoned minced meat or vegetables inside.
The ensemble is dipped in hot oil and fried until golden brown. Add lime juice for a better taste.
Ugali is another popular dish you’ll find in restaurants and households across the country.
Of all Kenyan foods, nothing beats Ugali on the list of popular dishes. Maize flour and boiled water are the main ingredients used to make Ugali, a dough-like mound.
Ugali, on its own, seems bland but is mind-blowing when served with meat and fried vegetables.
Sukuma Wiki is stereotyped as a budget food in Kenya mainly because it’s super cheap and readily available throughout the year everywhere in Kenya.
Sukuma Wiki is similar to Kale and is known as Collard greens in some countries outside Kenya.
Sukuma Wiki is fried with onions and tomatoes. It’s an excellent source of protein and is the perfect side dish for Ugali.
White rice is locally prepared by pouring a cup or more of rice into boiling water to cook.
Wali Wa Nazi is a coastal and Asian variation where white rice is cooked in coconut milk instead of water.
It is finger-licking good and best served with chicken, beef, curry, or fish stew and vegetables.
If you want a tasty snack, Mishkaki would be your best bet. Mishkaki, also known as Mshakiki, is marinated meat, diced, and skewered over a charcoal grill.
One can add diced veggies like onions and bell peppers and use different types of meat like goat meat, beef, chicken, or mutton.
Bhajias are revered snacks made from sliced potatoes coated in seasoned gram flour batter and deep-fried until ready.
The burst of flavors in your mouth happens thanks to spices like cumin, parsley, ginger, and chili powder in the flour.
This crispy snack is served with mango chutney or tomato sauce.
Even though the country is a leading producer of the best quality coffee other countries love, tea is the hot drink most Kenyans prefer.
Chai ya Tangawizi is tea infused with ginger. Kenyans brew tea by pouring whole-fat milk into boiling water and adding tea leaves and ground ginger.
This hot drink is best served with bread, mandazi, cake, or chapati.
The meals on this Kenyan foods list are native, but Vitumbua is a snack prominent in the coastal area but hails from Tanzania.
Vitumbua is a snack prepared from a batter mixture of rice flour, cardamom, and coconut milk dipped in hot oil.
If you’re a vegan looking for a healthy snack alternative, you’ll love vitumbuas. They get crunchy on the surface but have a soft spongy consistency that just melts in your mouth.
Want to substitute fizzy drinks for something healthy? Drink Uji or Kenyan Porridge.
Uji is porridge made from finger millet, amaranth, Sorghum, or maize flour.
Uji is a Kenyan staple offered to patients, children, the elderly, pregnant women, or breastfeeding mothers.
I’d recommend Labania Za Maziwa, if you love chocolate fudge.
Labania Za Maziwa is fudge made from milk, flour, and sugar seasoned with cardamom.
These snacks are a perfect gift when attending a kid’s birthday party or visiting a friend who’s an acclaimed sweet tooth.
