mshikaki recipe – Kaluhi's Kitchen

I love hosting at home; but only when it is a small group and when people come early and leave early LOL. I have developed a soft spot for brunches and lunches. From the point of view of the host, you can cook early, enjoy food & company and after your guests leave, you have still time to clean, clear, unwind and rest. I always reach for things that are quick to make but so tasty to have. Pilau is easy to make. Egg curry is easy to make. Wali wa nazi with cumin is so easy and super tasty as well. These burgers are easy to make too! For starters, I go for easy to make things as well- fish fingers, wings, mshikakis etc. I love mshikaki so much because its fun to play flavors around and put together. I have several recipes and for today we are turning up the heat with some chicken mshikaki with some tasty garlic ukwaju bbq sauce.

Chicken mshikaki reminds me of my days growing up in Lang’ata. We never had as much street food as let’s say Pangani and Eastleigh has, but what we did have made our evenings super exciting. With the cover of dusk, streets lined up with people selling all kinds of things. Hissing sound searing of mutura, smoke rising from jikos being fanned before roasting the maize, mshikaki being skewered for roasting and sold with viazi karai, kaleidoscopes of mabuyu and one shilling ice displayed for passer-bys to choose from were some of the things that made my evenings and walks from school so fun. Things in my childhood neighborhood have since changed but all the fun times remain cemented in my very soul!

To celebrate one of my faves, today’s recipe draws inspiration from chicken mshikaki I used to enjoy snacking on growing up. Of course, in true Kaluhi fashion, my rendition on it has shaken things up, turned up the spice dial and even thrown in a dip. Let’s get to it!