Nairobi Street Foods: the ultimate test to know who grew up in Nairobi

If you did not have all of these street foods that are so popular in Nairobi, then you are not a Nairobian and you did not grow up in Nairobi. They are: -

1.     Chips za five bob: - if you have not had chips za five bob, you have no idea what a foodgasm is. The chips come covered in thick red tomato sauce, which is only available at these chip vendors. These chips are amazing!!! Yes the oil was darker than the darkest night of the year, maybe that is why they were sweet. And for five bob you got a nice serving to get you home from school.

2.     Roasted Maize with pili pili ndimu; - this is my guilty pleasure. If I was on death row, this would be last request, on my death bed I would request mai choma with ndimu and pili pili. Growing up in Nairobi we had mai choma for 1 bob, how tough the economic times have become. 

Maize choma with pili pili

3.     Boiled eggs and kachumbari, I have had so much of mayai boiro, I do not like them any more. When I started working I would have two of these daily. So now I am off boiled eggs.

4.     Smokie with kachumbari

5.     Bhajia za bob

6.     Maembe pili pili, I still cannot resist this. Back in the day for one shilling, you got to mangoes with pili pili, and there say there is no heaven. I am a believer.

7.     Samosa'

8.  Ice ya bob, every single day my parents gave me five shillings and ice was one of the things I spent it on.

9. Mutura; - who has not had mutura, especially the one made in Nairobi with meat from God knows what animal, but we don't care what animal makes mutura all we care is how tasty it is. The best way to eat mutura is at the source, where it is being cooked, and the number one rule for eating mutura is 'thou shalt not wash thy hands.' It is way tastier that way. Though if your stomach is weak, please do not try this in Nairobi, one of your body parts will run and it will not be your legs.

10. These fruits (mapera), my younger brother and I used to climb over fences just to get one of these babies. It did not matter if that compound had fierce dogs, there was no stopping us. I still love these and I can eat like 20 of these in one sitting.

11. Sugarcane

12.  And lastly Mahindi chemsha, just looking at the picture and I am salivating. I work in a rural area but they do not sell this like they do in Nairobi. I love it when its soft and fresh with lots and lots of salt.

These street foods make Nairobi worth living. They make Nairobi different, they make Nairobi, Nairobi. They may have all these foods elsewhere in Kenya, but they do not make them as they do in Nairobi.

With 10 shillings, as a child growing up in Nairobi I got my junk and that made me one happy child.


photos from the internet.