Kenyan cuisine is a delicious fusion of bold flavours and local ingredients, from the bustling streets of Nairobi to the coastal towns. 

Whether it’s the hearty ugali, a staple enjoyed with almost every meal, the slow-cooked and flavourful nyama choma (grilled meat), or the coastal favourite samosas, Kenyan foods offers something for every palate. 

Foods in Kenya frequently revolve around hearty soups and stews, perfect for communal gatherings. 

Root vegetables, capsicum, tomatoes and leafy greens are staple ingredients, adding depth and flavour to dishes. 

Staple Foods From Kenya

In Kenyan cuisine, several staple foods form the foundation of many meals and foods from Kenya.

Here are five of them:

• Chapati – A soft, flaky flatbread, usually served with stews or curries.
• Ugali – A thick, dough-like cornmeal dish, often served as a side to vegetables, meat, or fish.
• Beans – Often combined with maize (corn) in dishes like githeri or cooked in stews.
• Sukuma Wiki – A nutritious dish made from collard greens, typically pan fried with onions and tomatoes.
• Githeri – A hearty mix of boiled maize and beans, often enriched with vegetables and spices.

These staple foods are nutritious and versatile, forming the basis of countless tasty dishes in Kenyan cuisine.

Let’s go! 21 Most Popular Foods from Kenya

1) Mandazi

Sweet, fried doughnuts are often enjoyed with tea or coffee—and remember that Kenya has some excellent coffee, so this snack pairs perfectly with a good cup of Kenyan coffee.

These delicious treats are popular as a snack or quick breakfast.

2) Grilled Fish

Tilapia and Nile perch are freshwater fish commonly eaten around Lake Victoria in Kenya, usually prepared either grilled or fried. Red snapper, a coastal favourite, is usually grilled or baked and served with Swahili-style sauces.

In Kenya, fish is prepared in various ways, including frying, grilling, stewing, and serving with staples like ugali, kachumbari, or rice.

3) Mahindi Choma

Street vendors commonly sell grilled maize (corn) on the cob, which is called Mahindi Choma in Kenya.

It’s a simple but satisfying snack with a smoky flavour and a good crunch.

Mahinda Choma is often enjoyed plain, with just a sprinkle of salt or a squeeze of lemon, making it a simple yet satisfying snack locals love.

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4) Mukimo 

Mukimo is a Kenyan dish prevalent among the Kikuyu community. It’s made by mashing boiled potatoes with green vegetables like spinach or pumpkin leaves, corn and sometimes peas. 

This vibrant green dish can be served as an accompaniment to meat stews or nyama choma. 

5) Matoke 

If you visit Kenya, you will notice this dish everywhere. Matoke, originally from Uganda, is also a favourite in Kenya.

Plantain bananas are cooked with oil, tomatoes, onions, garlic, chillies, and sometimes meat, then finished with a splash of lemon juice.

The bananas become tender and soften into a rich, thick sauce with the other ingredients. The result is a tasty dish similar to boiled potatoes in sauce, perfect with rice, ugali, or chapati.

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6) Uji 

Uji is a traditional Kenyan porridge made from fermented millet or sorghum flour.

This dish is enjoyed for breakfast, and its savoury flavour can be sweetened with sugar or honey. Nutritious and filling, it’s a popular meal, especially in rural areas.

7) Maharagwe

Maharagwe is a tasty bean stew cooked with coconut milk, tomatoes, and spices. We enjoyed this dish many times over while travelling throughout East Africa. 

It’s a comforting and filling vegetarian dish often enjoyed with rice or chapati.

8) Nyama Choma

Nyama Choma is Kenya’s favourite grilled meat, usually goat or beef, seasoned simply and cooked over an open flame.It’s a must-try for any meat lover!

Nyama Choma is a social meal that is served alongside dishes such as kachumbari (tomato and onion salad), ugali, or sukuma wiki.

It is a must-try for anyone who wants to taste many different foods from Kenya.

9) Chapati

You’ve likely heard of this food already. Soft and flaky flatbread, often served with stews. Its roots trace back to Indian cuisine, but it’s a favourite among the Kenyans.

Not only is chapati popular in Kenya, but it’s also a staple in Somalia, Pakistan, Tanzania, and Uganda.

Chapati pairs perfectly with beans, fried cabbage, and all those delicious Kenyan stews, or is simply folded up to be enjoyed with a spiced cup of masala tea!

10) Biryani

Biryani is a delicious rice dish with strong coastal and Swahili influences, particularly popular in cities like Mombasa.

It consists of spiced, aromatic basmati rice cooked with marinated meat, usually chicken, beef, goat, or fish. 

The meat is slow-cooked with a blend of spices like cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, and cumin, often with tomatoes and onions. 

It’s similar to pilau but more decadent and extravagant.

11) Ugali

Ugali is a thick maize flour porridge, arguably the most popular staple in Kenyan cuisine. Enjoy it as a side to stews, veggies, or grilled meat.

Ugali is on our list of 15 of Africa’s most popular foods.

12) Mishkaki

Similar to kebabs, mishkaki are skewered and grilled meats.

The meat is first marinated with spices and then perfectly grilled. Mishkaki is often served with a spicy sauce, an essential element that explains why this food in Kenya is so good!

13) Mutura

Kenyan-style sausage that is made from meat, seasoned with spices, then packed into intestines and grilled. 

It’s a popular street food for meat lovers; just be sure to check if it’s freshly cooked (and not from yesterday’s batch).

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14) Samosa

It would be hard to find anyone who doesn’t know what samosa is! These crispy, triangular pastries are filled with minced meat or vegetables. 

A popular snack with Indian influences, they’re sold on virtually every street corner in Kenya. They’re easy to prepare and quick to fry.

This is a great snack to take on those long shared taxi journeys.

15) Pilau

Pilau is spiced rice cooked with fragrant spices like cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom. It is often served with meat and is especially popular along the coast.

You can add curry or meat to this dish if you wish.

16) Githeri

A filling dish of boiled maize and beans, sometimes mixed with vegetables and spices. This simple food from Kenya is packed with nutrition and it’s high in protein.

It’s a filling meal often eaten in rural areas with rice or chapati.

17) Bhajias

Bhajias are popular deep-fried snacks made from thinly sliced potatoes coated in a spiced chickpea flour (gram flour) batter. The batter is typically seasoned with turmeric, cumin, and coriander, giving the bhajias a spiced punch.

Crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, bhajias are often served with tangy chutneys or tomato sauce.

They are a favourite street food, especially along the coast where Indian culinary influences are strong.

18) Sukuma Wiki

Sukuma Wiki is typically collard greens that are pan-fried with onions, tomatoes, and oil and sometimes seasoned with spices.

It’s often served as a nutritious side to ugali, stews, or nyama choma, making it versatile and essential to the variety of foods from Kenya.

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19) Kachumbari

A fresh tomato and onion salad popularly served alongside grilled meats. 

It’s light, zingy, teeming with flavour, and perfect for balancing meat-heavy meals. If you plan to go on a safari in Kenya and East Africa, I recommend eating as many fresh salads as possible in the city of Nairobi before you go!

Of course, the food will be good; however, fresh vegetables may be limited on your trip.

20) Omena

Tiny, sun-dried fish cooked with onions, tomatoes, and spices. Omena is a staple near Lake Victoria and usually served with ugali and leafy vegetables.

It offers a crunchy texture and a unique, slightly salty taste. 

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21) Kuku Paka 

It is a popular East African dish, particularly prevalent along Kenya’s coast.

It features grilled or boiled chicken cooked in a rich, creamy coconut curry sauce made with onions, tomatoes, garlic, ginger, and turmeric and cumin and reflects the fusion of Swahili and Indian culinary influences.

The dish is typically served with rice or chapati.

We’ve reached the end of our list of the most popular foods from Kenya! Have you tried Kenyan cuisine before? Does your favourite dish appear here? If not, please let us know what it is in the comments below.

Travel Tips for Africa

We have many travel guides and tips for Africa – what a massive continent!

Have you ever wondered how many countries in Africa there are? 54 or 55? We cover them in depth in our ultimate Africa bucket list.

There is some delicious cuisine to be enjoyed across Africa, and these ten best African countries for food will inspire your food journey.

Check out how many of these 15 most popular foods you can taste.

If you’re wondering what they eat for breakfast in Africa, check out these 20 popular breakfast foods.

For food lovers, our Food Map of AFRICA lists the quintessential dish you need to eat in every nation!

It’s worth reading these 17 ESSENTIAL Things to know before travelling to West Africa, and our packing list for Africa may be helpful to you.

Don’t miss our recap of our travels across West Africa for even more helpful tips, and try these popular West African dishes; they’re fantastic!

You’ll need to stay connected while travelling in Africa. We recommend eSIM. It’s easy, reliable and affordable. View eSIMs for individual countries in Africa, or consider a regional eSIM for Africa (which covers 36 countries)

If your travels in Africa are part of a much larger global adventure, then a Global eSIM may be the answer. It connects you in 124 countries, offering data-only eSIM and data/call/text Global eSIM. This eSIM has been a game-changer for us, and we couldn’t imagine travelling without it now.

If you want to travel with like-minded travellers, consider joining a group tour. Check out our Group Tours first for any upcoming departures in Africa, or view Tourradar for deals on group tours in Africa.

Check out our best-ever travel tips compiled from more than twenty years of experience.