KENYA KIENYEJI CHICKEN RECIPE
Recipe shared by Rev. Domnic Misolo, director of IFAGE, a GHI partner project
Chicken is popular among the Luhya communities in Kenya. The chicken must be kienyeji, a local (free-range) chicken breed, and not a broiler, as it is believed that kienyeji chickens are tastier and healthier than broilers.
Families will slaughter up to 5 kienyeji chickens for Christmas, depending on how many they are catering for, and they are fried, roasted, or wet fried, whichever method you fancy.
Here is a recipe for a Kenyan delicacy for this festive season!
Chicken Preparation Tips
Preparing kienyeji chicken is one thing. However, ensuring your chicken is tender and can be removed from the bone easily without hurting one's teeth is another. Here are some tips and tricks up our sleeve on how to get that soft kienyeji chicken.
Tip 1: Wash with vinegar. Vinegar is a sure way of killing germs and adding moisture to your meat. It will tenderize it by removing all the gooey and fatty parts that are on the skin. Much as kienyeji chicken has minimal fats, you still want to have fat on the low.
Tip 2: Let the chicken marinate overnight. The longer the marinating time, the juicier, flavorful, and tenderer your chicken will be. Choosing to marinate overnight gives your chicken more time to rest and take in all the spices.
Tip 3: Boil chicken for a long time. Kienyeji chicken is hard-core free-range. To mean, the meat is tough and cannot cook in a few minutes. You need to let it boil for about one to two hours. For better results, maybe three hours.
Kenya Kienyeji Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
•1 kuku ("chicken" in Kiswahili, the language widely spoken in Kenya) kienyeji cut in pieces
•3 red onions (diced)
•4 tomatoes (pureed) and 2 teaspoons tomato paste
Overnight marinade
•3/4 cup of plain yogurt
•2 tbsps of tomato paste
•1 tsp of paprika
•1 tsp of cumin powder
•1 tsp of cayenne powder
•1/2 tsp of cinnamon
•2 tsps of garlic powder
•1 tsp of black pepper
•1 tsp of salt to taste
•1/2 cup of crushed ginger and garlic paste
Method
1. Clean your chicken under running water, drain the excess water then proceed to clean it with white vinegar. Allow it to sit in the vinegar for about 10 minutes then discard the vinegar.
2. Mix all the ingredients to form the marinade and toss the chicken in then leave it overnight.
3. Put your chicken in a pot with water to the brim and boil for 2-3 hours. Every 25 minutes, add more water as you toss the chicken.
4. Check how tender your chicken is after 2 hours. Poke it with a fork and see if it goes through smoothly. If it’s tender, drain the remaining water and add 4 tbsp cooking oil and the diced onions, cooking for a minute.
5. Add the tomato puree and tomato paste and stir. Cook for ten minutes and add water if desired for more broth. Check your seasoning and turn off the flame!
Serve hot as a main meal with Rice, Chapati (flat bread), or Ugali (stiff maize porridge).
