Chipati is pretty much every Kenyan’s favorite recipe. I haven’t met a single person who doesn’t like it. We eat them at least every other day in this house. It’s kind of like a thicker, denser, and tastier version of a tortilla.
Ingredients
wheat flour
corn flour
lemon zest
water
sugar
Salt
oil
Step 1: Sift equal parts wheat flour and corn flour into a big bowl. Measurements are not a thing here so everything eyeballed.
Step 2: Add lemon zest to four. (Yes, this is a lemon, not a lime. It would eventually turn yellow but must people here use them when they are still green). Add salt and sugar to taste.
Step 4: add some water to the bowl and begin mixing throughly with your hands until desired texture is achieved. Typically this mixture is very thick and very sticky.
Step 5: spread flour on the counter and roll out dough with rolling pin.
Step 6: spread a thin layer of oil on top layer of flattened dough and then roll up the dough.
Step 7: Slice dough into little circles and flatten with your hands.
Step 8: Roll out each individual section to a circular tortilla size.
Step 9: place Chipati on lightly greased pan and let cook for one minute on each side. Then, flip and add oil to both side. Continue flipping until it begins to brown. Repeat steps 8-9 until all the dough is used up.
Step 10: enjoy! Chipati is normally eaten plain and is occasionally used to soak up the broth of a stew.
~ Nell in Nairobi