“What is we having?”

Some of you back home may be wondering “what is we having?” here in Kenya. Well, I will give you an idea of the food we are eating here. But first I must introduce you to Sammy, who is responsible for cooking all our meals. Sammy enjoys sneaking up behind Canadians and Kenyans alike and banging pots to inform us that dinner or lunch is served. On Sunday we created a slip and slide in the backyard. Bryan, Ibra and Rono tackled Sammy down the slip and slide. It was honestly one of the funniest things I have ever seen. Refer to Courtney’s post if you want to know more about this intriguing man.

I will give you an idea of a typical day of Kenyan food:

In the morning we wake up to mandazi (donuts), bread (with your choice of red plum jam & peanut butter), hard boiled eggs, sausage, fruit (usually pineapple and banana) and of course CHAI (tea), my personal favourite. I must say (among other reasons) CHAI (tea) is why I am eager to hop out of bed most mornings. However, CHAI (tea) is not as popular with all QHO/YESS members (it pains Miss Shwatson).

Moving on the lunch and/or dinner:

Kenyans often eat a warm meal at lunch. Foods that we eat for lunch are often served for dinner as well. Each and every meal, without fail, is served with fruit (watermelon, pineapple, banana, passion fruit, pear, papaya, and mango). I have to say the eating pineapple or banana back in Canada won’t be the same as in Kenya. Everything here is so fresh and the flavors are so strong. The best I could compare it to is eating fresh fruit in Kenya is like eating a peach in season and eating fresh fruit in Canada is like eating a peach in the middle of winter. Hopefully that comparison is more clear than confusing.

1) Meats/protein: beef stew, chicken ( often fried with rosemary), goat stew, meat sauce, fish ( head, tail..), beans
2) Vegetables: sukumawiki ( literally means “push through the week”, green vegetable, resembles spinach), cabbage, mashed potatoes, mashed banana, banana stew, lentils
3) Carbohydrates: pasta, potatoes (chips or baked), ugali (cornmeal), chapatti

My personal Kenyan favourite is chapatti (think of deep fried pita bread) with lentils or beans. YUM!!
There you have it…Kenyan food!
Till next week.
Deirdre <3