Growing up in the village, Mkenye was my mom’s favorite treat for us on weekends. Even at that time, Mom knew the health benefits of this dish. But, more than anything, I enjoyed the ease with which he made it. So today, I bring my mom’s delicious and easy Mkenye recipe.
This is one of the traditional Luo recipes, but as long as you have beans and sweet potatoes or cassava, you can make this dish. Not only is this dish tasty and filling its nutrients dense too.
What is Mkenye
Mkenye is a common meal in the west of Kenya. However, it may have a unique name. It just gives a blend of sweet potatoes and beans. The name is from the Luo dialect, but some people refer to it as ‘Mushenye.’
Usually, you just need to mash the two to make it. Nevertheless, you can also use cassava; some even use Irish potatoes.
It’s a rich fibrous diet that we mostly use because traditionally, we could spend much time tiling our lands.
The easy Mkenye recipe
We have it in this when discussing some of the simplest delicacies that are almost forgotten.
Ingredients
- ½ kg of beans
- A full tablespoon of sal
- Cooking oil
- Three sizable tomatoes
- 3 Red onions
- One bell pepper
- Garlic-ginger paste
- Handful spring onions
- Two cubes of royco
- Salt
- Two kilograms of either sweet potatoes
- Water
The preparation
Clean and soak the beans
Select the dirt from the beans, wash it, and then soak it for 1 to 2 hours before boiling helps soften it, reducing the boiling period.
Boil the beans
Traditionally we boil beans in a clay pot, and of course, if you go to the village, you’ll find them. You can also use the pressure cooker as we do, which should take less than an hour to be ready. We want it to be soft and mushy, so keep it fully cooked.
Frying the beans
You can always use boiled beans and sweet potatoes just as they are. But if you want it to taste even better, it’s best to fry it. Note that this is my modification, not how Luos made it traditionally.
So, chop your onions, garlic tomatoes, dhania, and bell papers. Add a little oil to the cooking pot, and then add onions to cook.
Next, add the garlic and ginger paste and then allow it to cook before adding the tomato puree. Add the bell peppers and cover to cook.
Once cooked, you can add your spices, including chilies, cumin royco cubes, turmeric, and whatever you like to add.
Add the beans and toss it a few times, cover it, and let it cook for a bit. Add a cup of water and cover for another 5-10 minutes.
Get off the fire source and set aside.
Prepare the sweet potatoes.
Remove the pills of your sweet potatoes, then cut them into sizable pieces. In a clean container, take your cassava pieces and wash them.
Boil your sweet potatoes.
Put the clean pieces of sweet potatoes in a bigger clean pot, add a spoonful of salt, and two cups of water, then cover to cook. I don’t expect you to have much water remaining, but if you do, drain it and set it aside, as you may need it for the next step.
Mash the potatoes with the beans.
Let’s get to the good part. Traditionally we would just mash the two as they are and remember the beans are richly flavored, and it will still be as delicious. But I love the spring onion and red onion buttery flavor.
So in a different saucepan, add a spoonful of butter with a spoonful of olive oil. Let it melt, add your chopped onions, and toss it all to cook.
Now, let’s add the sweet potatoes and toss them as frying, then add the beans. Toss it to mix, remove it from the heat source, and start mashing.
I mashed mine using a wooden stick, but you can use your masher to get the perfect texture. We are reaching for the ugali-like texture, neither hard nor too soft. If it’s too hard, add the remaining sweet potato water. Other people sometimes add some milk, but I didn’t on this.
It’s ready to serve, and enjoy it with your different stir-fried veggies or meats. Traditionally we served it with milk tea without sugar, “Dubia in Luo.” Some people use lemon grass tea for its rich benefits too.
@edelquinn23 Traditional African Foods Easy and delicious Mkenye(sweet potato and beans) recipe. For ingredients Check link in bio #africanrecipe #healthy #Mkenye ♬ original sound – Edel
General tips
To make mkenye, you can also use cassava, and it will just be as good. It will be different in taste since cassava is not as sweet but just as great.
We used to serve this meal for lunch or as a dinner meal and breakfast. However, it’s best for breakfast as it makes you start your long day having all the nutrients consumed.
When making mkenye for sweet potatoes, the ingredients and preparation steps remain the same. The only thing that you do is substitute cassava with sweet potatoes.
You can always use your already-cooked beans for this recipe too. If you had beans that you fried earlier and didn’t know what to do with them, then cook them this way.
Sweet potatoes have a lot of sugar content; hence when taking mkenye made of sweet potatoes, one can just serve it with water to ease digestion, especially in the throat.
Benefits of Mkenye
There are many health benefits when you eat this meal. However, it’s easy to make made it the best choice. Kids love it, too, because it’s easy to ingest. Other than that, we all like the sweetness and savory taste.
Great for gut health
Mkenye contains fiber. Remember, it brings together two ingredients that are a powerhouse of fibers. One of the best things about eating fibrous foods is that it’s known to help with heart health and lower the risks of diabetes.
Sweet potatoes give you both soluble and insoluble fibers. Our bodies need both since they will promote bowel regularity and the formation of good bacteria in your gut. Generally, the microbiome bacteria helps to reduce the risk of diabetes.
It’s great for your heart health.
We already said sweet potatoes and beans are already naturally rich in nutrients. These nutrients include ingredients that will help to fight cardiovascular diseases.
It will help to protect you against coronary diseases. Mind with its fibrous nature, you have the content that makes it a winner for heart health.
Weight maintenance
I know what most people think, can it? And yes, the sweet tubers and beans are great for weight maintenance. First, you will always feel full, so you don’t eat much. It also has rich fibers to promote weight loss.
It’s a nutrients powerhouse.
This meal was one of the most popular choices because it has nutrients. It contains but is not limited to proteins, fiber, sugars, sodium, carbohydrates, calories, zinc, copper, manganese, selenium, and vitamins B1, B6, E, and K.
Its an antioxidant
This blend is rich in antioxidants, making it easier to fight some cancers. Sweet potatoes, for example, have antioxidants like Anthocyanins, while beans are rich in polyphenols.
It’s filling
Most of our families liked it because when we took it with our teas then, we didn’t need to eat again during the day and could then focus on other roles.
It’s easy to make
traditionally we just took the boiled beans and the boiled sweet potatoes and then mashed them with salt. Well, that is something anyone can do, right? Today when I make it, of course, I like to add in some onions, but you don’t have to.
You can make it ahead of time
the great thing is that you won’t need to make the two major ingredients when you are ready to mash. Sometimes I use the leftover sweet potatoes and beans for the recipe to make it easy to recreate another different healthy meal version.
FAQs
What can I use to serve my mkenye with?
Traditionally, we took mkenye with a cup of dubia tea or our best porridge. My family loves it with beef, chicken stew, or nicely fried veggies.
Can I add veggies to my mkenye recipe?
Yes! Cooking is all about following your heart and playing with ingredients. You need to prepare your vegetables aside, and once you start mixing, you can add your veggie. This will even add more nutrients and health value to your meal.
How long can Mkenye leftovers last?
If you store it right, it will last three days in the refrigerator and up to 6 months in the freezer. Keynote is storing it exactly and safely,
Also, check our other article: Sweet Potato with groundnut sauce.