Garlic Ginger Whole Fried Chicken

Last day of March and what better way to end it than with guess what, chicken! It feels like March has been chicken month, that should be a thing honestly. I enjoyed cooking chicken wings for the first time which was fun. As we say goodbye to the month of March, I have something that I can say I have achieved. Nairobi Kitchen's Youtube channel went live! 🤗🤗🤗 (does happy dance)... It is something that I have always wanted to do which I kept postponing because of not having this and that... which I still don't have anyway, but I decided it is never going to be perfect. Waiting for things to align will be a regret I do not want to have. So I went for it, so today I have 048 subscribers and who knows next time I'll be writting about 480K subscribers 😍! The reception I have received has been awesome and I'm very grateful for that. Still doing the shooting and editing on my own, and I'm still learning so it really is fun. I cannot believe it is the end of March already, we are heading to almost half the year! All I can say is that I love sharing my recipes with you and look foward to more deliciousness! Happy New Month tomorrow!

Kenyan Sesame Mahamri

Mahamri is a delicious coastal snack that is known and famous for its aroma of cardamom, a sweet spice and delicate taste of coconut. You can use coconut milk or cream. I think dessicated coconut works as well, that reminds me, I think I should cook with dessicated coconut next time. For my first mahamri they turned out pretty delicious, I know a soon to be favorite in the house. In unrelated news, is it just me who loves the smell of yeast fermenting or what? Mahamri is unique in that you only cook with yeast whereas for Mandazi, you can cook them using baking powder. Try something new today with this delicious sesame seeds mahamri, I promise, you will love.

Oregano Garlic Beef Liver

Beef liver is one of my favorite meals. I know most of my friends who do not like liver, some because of the taste or some say it is hard and too rubbery. I guess people have different experiences with liver, or it might be that their first experience of eating liver was not that exciting. Liver is a soft meat that if you over cook that is when it becomes rubbery and soggy. To get rid of the toughness which is because of the membrane, peel it away before slicing so that you are left with the meaty part. I love stir fry liver because it not only tastes better, but the stir fry process gives the meat a sort of crispy texture and perfect crunch. This recipe will have you licking your fingers and making it over and over again. Adding spices to liver gives this liver a fantastic, spice delicious taste. Enjoy with some rice, pasta, chapati but best had with Ugali

Kenyan Lemon Mandazi

First of all, let us talk about the aroma of these lemon mandazi! Citrus fruits have natural aromas that get you excited, and I love me some lemon, in bread, cakes, salad, pancake or crepes, drinks and even chicken! Mandazis are best eaten warm with your favorite drink like tea, coffee, juice or even yoghurt. When it comes to mandazi, I love them hollow at times while other times I love them with a little bit of flesh, especially if I am craving Mandazi. Family loved the orange Mandazi but these were a constant hit, with no left overs to hide away! 

Quick and Easy Minced Beef Stew

Whenever I am hungry, I like to whip up something that is quick and easy. That's where this minced beef stew comes from. Luscious, thick, filled with layer after layer of flavor and texture. I mostly cook minced beef for eating with spaghetti or pasta but today I wanted to have it with rice. Whether it be plain rice, pilau or fried rice, you will love this recipe. Make the minced beef spicy with some paprika, cayenne or chili pepper. 

Double fry Homemade French Fries

Lately I have been loving homemade french fries. Simply because I know they are fresh since they are cooked in my own oil. We have all heard about places where they reuse oil so many times and cook in the same oil different things especially in fast food restaurants. Whether true or not, it still gives you that eerie feeling that you could be eating french fries on friday with oil that cooked fries last monday! I don't mean to alarm you, but, homemade is mostly better. I chose to double fry my potatoes so that I get crispy golden fries in the end. It also helps the potatoes not to absorb too much oil since the second fry gives the potatoes an extra hard coating. You can choose to boil the potatoes first before frying them, they'll be delicious.

Balsamic Garlic Pepper Chicken

I always see pre-marinated chicken in the freezer section of supermarkets and I have always wanted to give it a try. I usually marinate my own chicken but I wanted something new so this was going to be my plan. I forgot to ask what the marinade ingredients were but the pack was labeled Chicken Boston Barbecue. Well, well, well, this chicken was gonna take me to Boston! Hehe! Anyway, I decided not to add too many condiments since the chicken was already marinated. I was pleasantly surprised when I started searing the chicken the aroma that filled the chicken was just wow! I wanted to add some color with some red onions and green bell peppers. They added a touch of freshness and crisp. I shallow fried the chicken to make sure that I did not loose the flavours in the marinade, that I forgot to ask 🤣, bottom line is, I looooooved the chicken!

Cilantro Chili Pork Fry – Spicy Stir-Fry with Fresh Herbs & Heat

D.E.L.I.C.I.O.U.S, that is exactly the word that best captures the essence of this quick and easy pork fry. There is something incredibly satisfying about a meal that not only comes together effortlessly but also delivers a burst of rich, indulgent flavor in every bite. What makes this pork fry particularly special is that it does not rely on an overload of spices or an exhaustive list of ingredients. Instead, it leans confidently into the natural taste of pork, allowing its own fat to render and infuse the entire dish with incredible depth and richness. The result is a wonderfully aromatic, juicy, and flavorful dish that is both rustic and refined at the same time.

Butter Vanilla Rock Cakes

Vanilla Rock Muffins are great for Sunday mornings, the aroma wafting throughout the house as excitement starts to bubble. So easy with few ingredients, these vanilla rock muffins will soon be your favorite, I promise!

Ultimate Fluffy Chocolate Pancakes

Saturdays or rather lazy Saturdays were made for pancakes, chocolate pancakes! I love fluffy pancakes that literally melt in your mouth and these do exactly that.

Sticky Honey Garlic Chicken Wings

Wohooo! My first wiiings! My first wiiings! That was literally me singing out loud as I bit into a sticky, saucy, finger-licking chicken wing that I had finally cooked for myself. The moment felt almost ceremonial. I have cooked many chicken recipes before, from juicy chicken thighs to tender chicken breasts and hearty drumsticks, but for some reason, I had never tried making chicken wings at home. 

Like many people, I had seen countless chicken wing videos online, especially on Tasty, and always told myself, “One day, I must try that.” And finally, that day arrived. Let me tell you, the hype around wings is not overrated. Unlike other chicken cuts, wings cook pretty quickly. You don’t have to spend forever in the kitchen, which is a huge plus for anyone who wants a delicious meal without the hustle. They’re the perfect balance between crispy skin, juicy meat, and flavorful sauce.

Pantry Organization Part 2

Series 2 of our pantry organization continues with the process of getting an organized pantry. You never know that you have so much stuff until it is all laid out out of the pantry. The best way to declutter and organize your pantry is laying everything out so that you know where to begin. Once everything is out you can plan where and how the items will be placed back. You get a much better perspective. For now there are no canisters or containers to put the dry food stuff in, but it still needs to be decluttered and arranged in a way I can find things easily.  You
saw how the pantry looked which was giving me negative unsettling vibes. Today is the day I work on it. Since it is a process with some stages, I will post the organized pantry next week. Today I will just show you my process and give you some tips then next week will be the big reveal. I cannot wait to start on this pantry organization so lets get on with it💪💪

Kenyan Mini Cinnamon Mandazi

Happy Sunday! I always look foward to Sunday mornings because I get inspired to make delicious breakfast without having to worry about time. Lately I'm having mandazi cravings, after that yummy orange mandazi, I still want more. Every body loved that orange flavour in mandazi plus the vibrant color. Today I wanted to add spices to get that warm sweet spiciness. Have you ever tried those recipes that are usually at the back of food packets? I always see them and just brush off, but today I decided hmmmm, what's the worse that could happen? Nothing went wrong, in fact these mandazi were delicious that my sisters were eating them before I finished cooking them. So this recipe has been inspired by the back of my mandazi flour packet with every detail followed. Have you ever tried a recipe from a food packet?

Coconut Oil - Oil Seasoning Of The Week

My first memories of coconut oil is when we were really young and mum used to apply it to our hair immediately the braids were off so we can go off to the salon. There was no need for our hairs to be straightened out or blow dried because the coconut oil was instant in softening the hair for it to be combed. Us and our kinky hair needed that coconut oil on our hairs lest it be hell! combing it out. Fast forward to now and I know about coconut oil for cooking with. So far mu most used coconut products are coconut cream, coconut milk and desiccated coconut. I love the taste, flavor and aroma of coconut in food. I have used coconut in my rice dish, I have made coconut french toast that was totally delish! Coconut oil has plenty of benefits that you will be glad you have been using it or if you have not then welcome onboard.

Cardamom Vanilla Mug Cake

I was craving something sweet and I needed it to be fast so what is my answer to my craving, mug cake yo! Before we get into the thick of things HAPPY INTERNATIONAL WOMENS DAY! To every woman working hard to put food on the table, I salute you. Moms, sisters, aunts, daughters, nieces, grandmas every woman out there, you are special and loved. I have been thinking a lot about spices and so I decided to spice up this mug cake with one of my favorite warm spice that is cardamom. Speaking of cardamom, I used to correct people who wrote cardaMOM thinking that it was cardaMON. Am I the only one who thought that? I'm sure am not, I know you thought that too or are still thinking in that direction. Anyway apart from having a fantastic aroma, cardamom has some great health nutrients that benefit your body as a whole. To think that I lived my life without spices! I shudder. This mug cake turned out fluffy soft you would think it was baked in the oven. What has been your favorite mug cake flavour so far? 

5 Ways To Get Soft Layered Chapati - Pleats Method

My chapati journey has been a long one to say the least. As much as I love to cook chapati nowadays, I woke up one day at 2am in the morning and cooked chapati because I had a chapati craving, it has been a growth curve for me. Growing up in an African setting, knowing how to cook is not a luxury or a maybe-you'll-learn-to-cook kind of thing. It is a REQUIREMENT! You were thrown into deep waters and you had to learn to swim or survive in the kitchen. So back to chapati lessons. Whenever mom would cook, she'd require us to sit and watch her cook and learn because "kesho ni wewe utapika" (tomorrow is your day to cook). Cooking chapati was a chore we all hated but after a while I think I was the only one who actually enjoyed being in the kitchen. So we would cook and the chapatis would turn out shapeless and hard as biscuits! Complaining hoping mom would take over since we had butchered the chapatis, she would wave her finger at us "hizo chapati ngumu na shapeless ndio tutakula tuu!" and tell us we would all eat those chapatis until we learnt. Needless to say, we enjoyed the chapatis as they were until it was no longer a chore, for me at least, my sister still hates cooking chapati she would rather eat rice or noodles. For me the secret to making soft chapati is hot water, you start off nu kneading with a spoon before the water cools off then use hands to knead until smooth. For this process however you need warm water to knead flour because the dough becomes too soft if water is too hot. The DOUGH is what makes a GOOD chapati, get that right and you will enjoy making delicious soft chapati. So lets get on with it.

Caramelized Onion Sausage & Spinach Stuffed Omelette

Have breakfast like a King, so they said, and so they were right. Last week we talked about the nutritious benefits of eggs and that inspired me to get into my kitchen and whip up an egg recipe. And today morning was just the perfect day to cook this delicious stuffed omelette. I love a combination of spicy, crunchy and soft. All the elements on this dish came together so well that this is my new favorite egg dish. The caramelized onions add a sweetness that contrasts with the spice of the cayenne pepper, which I love.

Pilau Masala Whole - Whole Spice Of The Week

As you all know I love spices, both savoury and sweet. They just give food that EXTRA! vibe. Whether is is sweet dessert or spicy curries, you will never go wrong when it comes to adding them to your dishes. My spice for the week is Pilau Masala Whole spice mix. This spice mix contains cumin seeds, black pepper, cinnamon sticks, cardamom and cloves. Using whole spices adds that authentic natural aroma and taste. When using whole spices you can ground them in a mortar or electric grinder. I like using them whole especially when making Korma. I have cooked pilau with ground spices so this month look forward to a whole spice pilau affair.

EASY 2 Ingredient Pan Fried Toast

Lazy Sunday mornings are made for quick and easy recipes. And what is more easy than a two ingredient recipe that takes only minutes to prepare? I love pan frying bread because it only takes a few minutes and there's not much washing after. For the toppings you can choose to add fruits like strawberries, banana, grapes or even mango; syrup you can go with maple, blueberry, strawberry or chocolate syrup or you can generously sprinkle with icing sugar, cinnamon or nutmeg. This pan fried toast can be eaten with eggs, bacon or even veggies. I love how crunchy the toast is all crumbly in your mouth and awesomely delicious!

How To Peel Raw Bananas Hustle Free

Peeling raw or green bananas has always been a hustle for me, probably why I haven't been cooking them. Whenever you peel green raw bananas, there is that sticky stuff that gets left behind on your fingers and hands. Plus there is a dark purplelish stain that also sticks to your palms. You need to thoroughly wash your hands after with something rough in order to remove thr stain and stickiness. I have heard of tips like smearing your hands with oil before chopping raw green bananas, soaking the bananas in salty water first before chopping or even covering or wrapping your hands with plastic paperbags and the chopping. Well apart from being such a hustle, paperbags were banned in Kenya so that is scrapped off. The method that I have seen is fast and though it does not scrape off all the stain, at least the stickiness is reduced and you do finish much faster. Another advantage is that you will not be chopping off too much flesh from the green raw bananas. So here is how I peel green raw bananas that I used for my matoke recipe.

Green bell pepper Fried Rice

"Hii rice inaweza" literally translates to "this rice is bomb!" Those were the first words that came out of my mouth when I served this dish. Why go out for some fried rice when you can cook your own gourmet rice for the family. I have made some fried rice recipes on this blog and they all do not have eggs. With fried rice you can add eggs just to add an element of new flavor. It is a personal choice not to include eggs but now the next one has to have eggs to make it like the Japanese fried rice which I love too. I added only 3 spices but you can ump the flavor with chili spices like paprika, cayenne or even chilli pepper. Fried rice is always about the flavor and you can make it your own with different ingredients. From beef, fish, chicken, pork or make it vegetarian with peppers, tofu, broccoli or even cauliflower. 

Onion Carrot Chicken Stir Fry

I don't think I will ever get enough of chicken. The luhya in me will not allow me to do that, hehehe! Apart from being delicious, there are so many ways to prepare that it never gets boring at all. My favourite way to make chicken is baking but lately am loving stir fry marinated chicken. The flavours are just awesome and mastered to perfection. Marinating chicken in spices and sauce will leave you with the best tasting chicken that there will be no leftovers! Your family will love this dish and will be requesting for it almost daily. If not, are they really your family? 🤣😋

Eggs - Protein Of The Week

Happy New Month Loves! Let's kick of this month with one of my favorite ingredients I use in the kitchen many times. Eggs! I love eggs, if I could I would eat everyday which really is not recommended by nutritionists or dieticians. Every other day is cool though. I have cooked with eggs very many times, whether it is on their own like my tomato scrambled eggs and bacon cilantro scrambled eggs, my ugandan rolex which had fried eggs and used the eggs in pancakes or even baked goods. I just realized I haven't cooked with boiled eggs, coming soon later on this month. Eggs are the most nutritious good since they contain so many essential nutrients like Vitamin A B2 B5 B6 B12 E, Calcium and Zinc. They contain anti oxidants that help prevent mascular degenaration and cataracts. The high protein in eggs helps reduce calorie intake in the day because they are satiating.