It was going to be a challenge for me. I don't deep fry well. I was determined to try my hand at making the Kenyan donuts called Mandazi for our lessons in Kenyan hospitality. I invited the Cue-Up crew to my house to help out, but the night before I decided to do a trial run. The recipe that Jackline gave us used a cup of Margarine--eek! I found another recipe online at this site that uses two tablespoons of butter and an egg. The recipe calls for warm milk and water, so I decided to melt the butter on the stove to with the milk and water. I also added some freshly ground cardamon seeds, which release their fragrant oils when they are worked into the warm dough. The first donuts I made were burnt on the outside and raw on the inside. (I told you I sucked at deep frying. ) I decided the dough had to be thinner, so I rolled it out to 1/2 cm thickness, and cut them into 1 1/2 inch squares. Bingo! They browned nicely and puffed up in the middle. I also took the liberty of dredging the warm donuts in sugar and powdered green cardamom. Have I told you how much I love cardamom? I bathe in the stuff, literally. I have an aromatherapy oil that includes cardamom in the mix.
My taste testers at home approved on the donuts, so I was pleased, but the real test would be Jackie's opinion. So, yesterday Pierre and I made another batch of mini mandazi. He rolled and cut the dough and I worried them about in the hot oil, flipping them over when they were browned and taking them out of the oil when they were cooked on both sides. I had roasted a Polderside chicken and made some borscht from my mom's recipe, so Lois joined us for a quick supper. Pierre brought sour cream for the soup, which we supplemented with a bit of superdynamite vegetable hot sauce from Italy which I love just about as much as cardamom, although I don't bathe in it. Lois brought bread and hummus, which I dipped in the soup, putting my clothes in deep jeopardy of being stained bright purple. People who eat borscht should have a special maroon wardrobe to wear while eating borscht. Maybe I should talk to LuluLemon about that--borschtwear.
Anyway, we bustled off to VIVO to prepare for the evening's festivities. I had a hell of a time making chai because 1) no stove 2) no tea pot and 3) no tea strainer. I ended up boiling the water in an electric kettle, heating the milk in the microwave and using coffee filters to strain the tea. Ack! I don't recommend this method. VIVO needs a big tea pot and a tea strainer. Every artist run centre should have one. As I' desperately fumbling around making tea, Jackie arrives. Lois immediately offers condolences because of the violence that is currently erupting in Kenya. Jackie says yes, it has upset her, made her sad, and she's been staying up late watching the news unfold online. I offer her a donut. Her eyebrows raise. "Oh! too much sugar! My mother would say that is a waste of good sugar. When we want sugar we just eat some sugar cane. Processed sugar is so expensive." But she said it made her happy that I had tried and she approved of my beginner's effort. Phew! I was very pleased. Jackie said we'd made the donuts too thin, so they were too dry to her taste. She said that if I made them for a dinner at her house I would be teased mercilessly all evening long as that woman who'll never get a husband because she doesn't know how to make mendazi! Tough love, I tell ya.
Cue Up's Mini Mandazi Recipe (makes about 5 dozen mini mendazi)
Here's the recipe I ended up with. I recommend you roll out the dough at least 1 cm. thick and experiment from there. Lois says that when Jackie makes them, they are like savoury Timbits. I've altered the recipe from the original source if you want to make our version of mini mandazi.
Ingredients:
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1 egg
- 4 cups white wheat flour
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1/4 cup of regular sugar or honey
- 1/2 tsp salt
- sunflower oil
For dredging:
1 cup sugar and 2 tbs. powdered green cardamon
Melt the butter over the stove, add milk and warm water. Mix dry ingredients and make a well into the centre. Mix the butter mixture into the dry ingredients and add the beaten egg. Add more flour if the dough is too sticky. Knead the dough until elastic and smooth (6-8 min.). Cut them into the shape you prefer (in Kenya they are typically triangular) and fry them in the hot oil. The oil should be between 300-400 degrees F (150-200 degrees C). You can test the oil by putting a little bit of dough into the pan which should float, sizzle, and turn brown. Roll the warm donuts in sugar on them before serving. These are best served as fresh as possible with spicy Masala chai.
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