Nairobi Kitchen

My first ever encounter with Pilipili ya Kukaanga was when we went to visit one of our cousin. She is "Coastarian" what we like to refer those guys who live on the Kenyan Coast like Mombasa, Lamu, Diani among other towns. They are well known for their spicy, fragrant and yummy Swahili cuisines. From bhajia, biryani, achari, mabuyu, mahamri, pilau, samosa, pilipili ya maembe... yaani, mapochopocho! 😋Our cousin had cooked Pilau and she says pilau is incomplete without Pilipili ya Kukaanga. Thus was the beginning of my love for this spicy hot delicious sauce! Pilipili ya kukaanga is simply a delicious chili sauce that is used to accompany dishes like Pilau, Biryani among other delicious Coastal delicacies. This is my simpler version but you can get as detailed as you like, you can add different spices, herbs, and even vegetables like bell peppers. Anything goes but the chillies are what is constant, so it depends how hot 🌶 you wanna go! I literally ate a few spoonfuls before I could cook the main meal, its that delicious. I also have a video on how I made this Pilipili ya Kukaanga, do check it out and SUBSCRIBE if you have not, thanks Loves!

My earliest memories of Ukwaju date back to when I was really young, less than 10 years old. Sighs "seems like ages ago lol" We used to go visit our grandma every holiday after closing schools. That is every April, August and December, like clock work we knew our holidays would be spent in "ushago" upcountry. And we loved it! Partly because the chores would be less, you know, its true that grandmas always spoil their grandkids 😉... I can't really remember which month it was or if it was those 3 months but the ukwaju (tamarind) tree was always ripe. Since the tree was too rough to climb, we would use long sticks to beat the pods out of their stems. Then we would gather on the ground, peel off the top later and suck the hell out of all those yummy insides. They do have a tangy sweet taste which we loved anyway. Then after the holidays, we would carry some back to town and mom would make fermented porridge and add the ukwaju while cooking. It was the best tasting porridge ever! Now fast foward to now, and being a grown up, I know the many uses of the ukwaju (tamarind) other than eating and adding to porridge. So my first ukwaju recipe is how to squeeze out the delicious juice so that you can use it for many other recipes. Have you tasted Ukwaju before? What has been your experience?