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Mayai pasua
Split eggs with kachumbari
Mayai pasua: Nairobi street-cart eggs split and filled with kachumbari
Glass-boxed carts outside Nairobi's bars and matatu stages sell mayai pasua into the evening: a vendor splits a hard-boiled egg with a knife, packs the gap with fresh kachumbari and shakes over salt and chilli. It is a quick, protein-heavy snack that tastes cool and sharp from the onion, tomato and lime against the soft yolk. Make a plateful for a party or a packed lunch, and serve with a dash of chilli sauce. The mistake to avoid is a soft or jammy yolk; for street style the eggs must be fully hard-boiled so they split cleanly. Chef's tip: salt the chopped onion with the lime juice for 5 minutes before adding the tomato; it softens the raw bite the way the vendors' pre-mixed kachumbari does.
- Total time
- 15 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 3
Ingredients
For the eggs
- 6 eggs
For the kachumbari
- ½ red onionvery finely chopped
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 firm tomatoseeded and finely diced
- ½ green chillifinely chopped
- 2 tbsp fresh coriander (dhania)finely chopped
To serve
- ¼ tsp chilli powder
- 1 tbsp chilli sauce (optional)
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Lower 6 eggs into a pan of boiling water over a medium-high heat and boil for 10 minutes, until the yolks are firm all through.
10 minStep 2: Lift the eggs into a bowl of cold water and leave for 5 minutes, then peel.
5 minStep 3: While the eggs cook, mix ½ red onion with 1 tbsp lime juice and half of the ¼ tsp salt in a bowl and leave for 5 minutes.
Step 4: Stir 1 firm tomato, ½ green chilli and 2 tbsp fresh coriander (dhania) into the onion.
Step 5: Cut each egg lengthways almost but not quite through, so it opens like a book.
Step 6: Spoon kachumbari into each egg, sprinkle with the rest of the ¼ tsp salt and ¼ tsp chilli powder and add a dot of 1 tbsp chilli sauce. Eat straight away.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 170 kcal
- Protein
- 13 g
- Carbs
- 4 g
- Fat
- 10 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does mayai pasua take?
- About 15 minutes in total: 5 minutes to prepare and 10 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 3 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of eggs?
- 1 tbsp ground flaxseed + 3 tbsp water per egg, left for 5 minutes (baking only; vegan).
- What can I use instead of red onion?
- White onion or shallots, same amount (soak raw onion in cold water for 10 minutes to soften it).
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