A large influence of Indian dishes on Kenyan cuisine
Situated on the equator on Africa's east coast, Kenya with its ethnic diversity has produced a vibrant cuisine which has been largely influenced by Indian cuisine thanks to the colonial rulers.
"There is a large Indian influence in Kenya. Many Gujarati people came to East Africa in colonial times and their influence can definitely be seen in Kenyan food, particularly with the use of fresh chilli and fresh coriander," says Kiran Jethwa, a chef from Kenya.
The Chef with Indian roots and the owner of Nairobi's premier seafood restaurant, Seven Seafood & Grill is set to take FoxLife viewers on a culinary adventure through Kenya, on the travel series 'Tales from the Bush Larder'.
"Kenyan cuisine, like many African cuisines is very simple. It is more about sustenance than flavour. The show does not really explore Kenyan cuisine, but it more focused on Kenyan ingredients. The ingredients in that part of the world are top class and it is this quality and variety of fantastic foods that the show seeks out," Jethwa says.
Jethwa a third generation Kenyan has an English mother and an Indian father and the influence of these two cultures in his life can be clearly seen in his cooking style.
"While Kenyans have a very simple menu, they do add flavour with these ingredients. Kenyans have also adopted the chapati. A Kenyan chapati is very similar to a paratha," says the chef.
Shot against breathtaking landscapes, each episode explores the source of one of the unusual ingredients that the country is rich in like the Nile perch from Lake Turkana, African wild honey and wild fowl, Swahili prawns, Boran beef, Do robo lamb, Palm Wine and Mud Crabs from the Northern Coast.
"There were many ingredients we explored in the 1st series of the show which includes Wild Mud Crabs, in Malindi on the North Kenyan Coast, Fresh Water Crayfish, in Lake Naivasha In the Rift Valley Wild Honey and Wild Guinea Fowl in Machakos district central Kenya, Sailfish & Octopus on the central Kenya Coast," says the Chef.
