Culinary delights abound – an early appreciation of dietary options in Kisumu

I bragged a bit (read:lots) that I could eat whatever I wanted in Perth, because I’d be so healthy eating nutritious greens and grains in Kenya #fitspiration. Jokes on me – the food is glorious and I devour everything like a vengeful food monster. In the immortal words of Beyonce; “I don’t think you ready for this jelly”, Kenya.

The culinary highlights of my first 12 days in Kenya

David’s wife, Sheila, taught me to make chapati from scratch. Like, I’m not bragging, but also I am. My hands crafted these.

Chapati are a gift to humanity and if they weren’t so darn labour intensive I’d only eat them. Chapati are a food staple in Kisumu, served with beans, chicken or vegetables and used to scoop everything up. There’s a tiny local cafe, The Oval Spoon, which makes a chapati and beans that I’d serve to Christ himself.

Tomatoes grown at the Akili Farm, in the Obunga slum. These colourful babies are the most flavoursome tomatoes, grown in donated greenhouses and used to supplement the lunch program at the Akili Girl’s School. A whole bag sells for 100 bop ($1.30). I use a grater to turn them into a delicious sauce, served with pasta or as the base of a stew.

“The Lake Experience”

David and Erick took me to a small restaurant, close enough to Lake Victoria that the water lapped at the back entrance. The restaurant is an open room, with no wall or window separating it from the lake. The fish is served with ugali – a soft, white starch staple used to scoop up sauce and provide slow burning energy. Served whole, fish is eaten with your fingers.

Java is a beautiful cafe with relatively reliable free wifi in Kisumu central. Their milkshakes are thick, luscious and if I could marry an inanimate object I’d marry this drink. I am a milkshake aficionado, and none I’ve drunk in Australia, Europe or America can live up to this shining example of dairy perfection.

Chips masala – hot chips cooked in masala curry sauce. I literally cannot believe Australia has not attracted a mass immigration of this dish. Even more incentive to open our doors to immigrants! I’ll send a sample to Peter Dutton asap.

Family dinner – on the weekends our three households do a food rotation. We each cook for one another, and share a meal together. Everyone was excited to be introduced to Australian food, but the lack of a BBQ and good cuts of meat is making this difficult. Luckily, there’s always chapati to lean back on!