Snacking is a Nairobi hobby and you can jump right in and enjoy some of the snacks available. Snacks in Nairobi tend to have a traditional background although some are modern variations made from processed meats. In Nairobi, most prefer to eat snacks in the morning with breakfast and in between meals alongside the most common drink, Kenyan tea.
‘Kenyan tea’ is a very particular way of brewing tea. This is in contrast to ‘English tea’. English tea is a mix of diluted milk to which one adds a tea bag to get the tea concentration that they desire. Most people in Kenya do not enjoy English tea and prefer Kenyan tea. Kenyan tea is the diluted mix of water and milk with the tea leaves added into it. This mix is brought to a boil in the kitchen. The resultant tea has a rich golden color and has a distinct taste of tea leaves.
The saying in Kenya is ‘every time is tea time’ and there is no shortage of excuses to take a cup of tea at any time in the course of the day or night. Basic breakfast in most establishments in Nairobi and in much of Kenya include a pot of tea, and snacks. The traditional snacks have a heritage from the coastal region, and from common farm produce. The snacks with a coastal heritage are mandazi and some formS of deep fried potatoes.
Mandazi is dough made from wheat flour, with a dash of baking powder and sugar, deep-fried to form a lovely brown snack, and it tends to be hollow inside. Mandazi is easily available in almost all cafeterias and hotels where you can have tea. Other common snacks are samosas. This is about a spoonful or two of minced meat with plenty of onions and spice wrapped in wheat dough. Another common snack is a beef kebab, a mixture of meat and potatoes wrapped in a thin layer of egg.
Sausages are also very common snacks in Nairobi and they can be either beef or pork sausages. Hard boiled eggs are common, as are traditional snacks. Traditional snacks are mainly farm produce such as boiled sweet potatoes, arrow roots, and cassava. These are healthier snacks and more people are enjoying these more than the deep fried snacks served in many places.