On this day, I was home alone. And when there are few people at home, obviously less food is cooked. The fridge was undergoing its seasonal sparseness and I knew exactly what I wanted to eat: githeri. Yes, I love githeri that much and that is the only meal I wanted. Mum had already boiled some maize and beans and froze them for future use. I defrosted some and prepared one of the best githeri yet. When mum came home she shared some of the githeri I had prepared with her friend, mrs.Kamau, and she tooootally loved this! For the weekend, my mum prepared a larger quantity of githeri but using the same recipe I had developed earlier that week. My sisters who were home over the weekend also really loved this new recipe. Seeing how it was so well received at home, I am certain you will enjoy it too :))
Today, we turn one of my FAVORITE Kenyan delicacies into one unforgettable feast!
COOK TIME:40 MINUTES SERVES:2
Ingredients
1 teaspoon of black pepper seeds
1 medium sized birds eye chilli
1/2 a teaspoon of dried sage
1/2 a teaspoon of curry powder
4 garlic cloves
900 g of boiled githeri (maize and beans)
1 red onion, finely diced
3/4 tablespoon of royco all spice mix
2 tomatoes, grated
1 teaspoon of tomato paste
Salt to taste
Method
Put the garlic, the black pepper seeds, the diced chilli and the sage in a kinu (pestle and mortar) and grind it all up until it forms a paste. Ensure your black pepper seeds especially are totally crushed since they can be quite overpowering when eaten whole…
You can fond dried sage in any supermarket. The large can costs around KES.120 (approx. $1) and lasts a lifetime! If you can find fresh sage, even better. Use 1/2 a teaspoon of fresh sage (or 3 leaves)
In a sufuria, heat up some vegetable oil and add the red onion and the garlic paste you have just pounded. Let this simmer on medium high heat until the onions have softened.
Add the tomatoes, 1/4 teaspoon of tomato paste (optional) and 1/4 cup of hot water then allow this to simmer for about 5 minutes. This allows the tomato paste flavor to develop and the sauce to thicken.
Thereafter, add the beans and mix them in. In a small cup, mix the royco and curry powder with some water and form into a paste. Add this to the githeri and mix in. Turn down the heat and let this simmer for 10-15 minutes. If you find the soup drying up, add a small bit of water just to prevent it from burning up. Never add a large quantity of water to at a go to any stew or you will end up with very unappealing githeri. And that mistake cannot be undone. A bit at a time always yields best results.
Chop up some fresh coriander and mix it in. Turn off the heat and serve.
The flavor of this sage and garlic githeri was beautifully layered. You could taste the curry and the very mild sage, which gives way to the black pepper and a soft garlic aftertaste. Pleasant bursts of chilli can be felt through out. Oh! This was too good to be true!
If you say githeri is boring, it is because YOU make it boring. But the good news is, YOU also have the ability to make it sooooo good. Just keep an open mind and try something new and different. Make your githeri out-of-this-world good using my sage and garlic githeri.
Happy Friday K Team!
{{hugs}}
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Sooo i read through this post at exactly lunch time, when i am starving and can’t have a meal just yet… #TheTorture
LOL! This would be so perf for lunch just about now…I hope you give this a try. Utapenda!
I most definately will 🙂
I particularly don’t like githeri……but this one has got me thinking….maybe I’ll give it a try..
As I always say, a good recipe can turn anyone into a believer. Try this one out. It may be the recipe you have been waiting for..
Oh Kaluhi, am so glad you are in the Kenyan space! You make food better, well after the internet being better too
Your kind words can give me a sleepless nights :)))))))))). Thank you soo much Kui! I am always glad to make a difference.