Mandazi Bites, also known as mini mandazis are sweet, soft, and doughy treats that you can’t have enough of, golden brown on the exterior, and slightly dense, but smooth, fluffy, and pillow-ey on the inside like clouds.
These delicious bites are mostly prepacked and sold as a snack in Kenyan supermarkets by almost every major commercial bakery. They come in a variety of flavors; vanilla, banana, pineapple, milk, coconut, lemon and more. I say “and more” whenever I run out of examples.
In summary, any flavor or essences known to mankind will pair well with mandazi bites. Feel free to experiment. In this post we will be trying out lemon flavored bites, made at home. These mini mandazis are different from the classic ordinary mandazis, not only in size but also in sweetness and flavor intensity.
You can make mandazi bites without eggs and milk and everything will turn out just fine. However milk help with the softness factor and would be recommended if your mandazis turn out hard and dry. The other reason for dry mandazis is using excess flour. Note that yeast is not required in mandazi making
If you don’t want to use baking powder, you can use bicarbonate of soda(baking soda). For this case use half the amount of bicarbonate that you would have used for baking powder.
Ingredients
Serves: 2 Cuisine: African(Kenyan) Course: Snack Total Time: < 30 minutes
- 2 cups, Self Raising Flour
- 1 cup, Hot Water
- 1/4 cup, Sugar
- 1/2 cup, Milk (OPTIONAL)
- 1/2 tsp, Cardamon or Cinnamon Powder(OPTIONAL)
- 1/4 cup, Melted Butter(OPTIONAL)
- 1/4 tbs, Lemon Essence(OPTIONAL), you can use fresh lemon juice instead or skip both
- Lemon Juice from half a lemon(OPTIONAL)
Procedure
- Begin by clearing your kitchen counters of all distractions, put on your chefs hat for extra points and confidence. Gather all the ingredients you are going to use, feel free to skip on the optional ones.
- In an absolute unit of a bowl, combine all the dry ingredients and whisk them till everything is distributed evenly. Meanwhile warm your milk or water and in a separate jar, mix the liquid ingredients till homogeneous.
- Slowly pour the liquid mixture over the dry mixture gently while stirring to incorporate everything, proceed to hand knead or use a hand mixer, till the dough is perfect, not sticky, but cohesive.This takes like 10 minutes
- Cover the mandazi dough in a bowl with a cling film and rest for at least 15 minutes
- Proceed to knead your dough for a good 5 minutes like a professional masseuse then roll out to a circle or disk maintaining a thickness of 1/2”
- Once your dough is evenly rolled out, cut it into any shape you want but maintain the small bite size, just go square for simplicity; life is too short for fancy shapes. Cut the dough into strips and then across to form the square or triangles, make parallelograms and rhombuses if you please
- Add oil to about 1/4 full of your saucepan or sufuria, bring it to temperature then add your dough pieces in, reduce heat to low, and cook till golden brown
- Once done, remove the bits from the oil and drain in a paper towel or in a draining rack. Optionally, sprinkle powdered sugar if you want extra sweetness and serve. Take pictures for Instagram and Snapchat stories; for your bragging rights
Mandazi Bites
Equipment
- Large mixing bowl
- Whisk
- Measuring Cups and Spoons
- Cling film/ Damp Kitchen Towel
- Rolling Pin
- Knife or dough cutter
- Saucepan or deep frying pan (sufuria)
- Slotted spoon or tongs
- Paper towels or a draining rack
- Optional: Hand mixer (for kneading the dough)
Ingredients
- 2 cups Self Raising Flour
- 1 cup Hot Water
- 1/4 cup Sugar
- 1/2 cup Milk OPTIONAL
- 1/2 tsp Cardamom/Cinnamon OPTIONAL
- 1/4 cup Melted Butter OPTIONAL
- 1/4 tbsp Lemon Essence ; you can use fresh lemon juice OPTIONAL
Instructions
- Preparation:Clear your kitchen counters of all distractions.Gather all the ingredients you are going to use. Feel free to skip the optional ones.
- Mix Dry Ingredients:In a large mixing bowl, combine 2 cups of self-raising flour, 1/4 cup of sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon of cardamom or cinnamon powder (if using).Whisk the dry ingredients until everything is distributed evenly.
- Mix Liquid Ingredients:In a separate container, warm 1 cup of hot water and, if using, 1/2 cup of milk.Add 1/4 cup of melted butter (if using), 1/4 tablespoon of lemon essence (if using), and the juice from half a lemon (if using) to the liquid mixture.Stir the liquid ingredients until well combined.
- Combine Ingredients:Slowly pour the liquid mixture over the dry mixture while stirring to incorporate everything.Proceed to knead the dough by hand or use a hand mixer until the dough is cohesive and not sticky. This should take about 10 minutes.
- Rest the Dough:Cover the dough in the bowl with cling film.Let it rest for at least 15 minutes.
- Knead and Roll the Dough:Knead the dough again for about 5 minutes.Roll out the dough to a circle or disk, maintaining a thickness of 1/2 inch.
- Cut the Dough:Cut the dough into small bite-sized shapes. Squares are simplest, but you can choose any shape you prefer.
- Heat the Oil:Add oil to a depth of about 1/4 full in your saucepan or frying pan.Heat the oil until it is hot enough for frying (a small piece of dough should bubble instantly when dropped in).
- Fry the Mandazi Bites:Reduce the heat to low and carefully add the dough pieces to the hot oil.Fry until the mandazi bites are golden brown, turning them occasionally for even cooking.
- Drain and Serve:Remove the mandazi bites from the oil using a slotted spoon or tongs.Drain them on paper towels or a draining rack.Optionally, sprinkle with powdered sugar for extra sweetness.
Notes
- Adjust Flour Consistency: If your dough is too watery or sticky, feel free to add more flour gradually until you reach the desired consistency. The exact amount of flour needed can vary depending on the brand of flour used.
- Milk for Softness: Using milk in the recipe helps achieve a softer texture. If your mandazi bites turn out hard and dry, try incorporating milk or a mix of milk and water next time.
- Self-Raising Flour Alternatives: If you don’t have self-raising flour, you can use all-purpose flour and add 1 teaspoon of baking powder to the 2 cups of flour.
- Flavor Variations: Experiment with different flavorings and essences, such as vanilla, pineapple, or coconut. However, avoid adding too much, as it can overpower other flavors or make the mandazi bites bitter.
- Spice Adjustments: For spices, you can use cardamom, cinnamon, or a combination of both. Adding a pinch of nutmeg can enhance the flavor complexity.
- Oil Temperature: To check if your oil is ready for frying, drop a small piece of dough into the oil. If it starts bubbling instantly, the oil is at the right temperature.
- Frying Time: Fry the mandazi bites until they are golden brown. If you prefer a darker color, fry them a bit longer, but be careful not to burn them.
- Storage: Store mandazi bites in an airtight container or a plastic bag to preserve moisture and prevent them from drying out. They will stay fresh on the countertop for up to 2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Make-Ahead Dough: You can prepare the dough ahead of time and refrigerate it for up to 12 hours. Ensure it is covered with cling film to prevent drying out.
- Serving Suggestion: Sprinkle powdered sugar over the mandazi bites for extra sweetness before serving.
Notes
- You don’t necessarily need self raising flour, mandazi flour works equally good. You can even use all purpose flour but then you will need to add 1tsp of baking powder to the 2 cups of flour. It is good practice to sieve your flour for even smoother mandazi bites. Don’t use yeast for mandazi, you will end up with mahamri instead.
- Milk adds creamy richness so you can swap out water and use milk entirely, or if you don’t have milk, use just water, or use half of each like I did here.
- Add any essence of your choice, vanilla, pineapple or whatever, don’t add too much of that. We want subtle flavors; and too much will overpower other tastes or even make the mandazi bites bitter.
- We mix dry ingredients separately for even distribution of ingredients, you don’t want a dough that is sweet in one bite and mild tasteless on the other bite. This helps in even concentration, mitigating lumping and blending flavors.
- For the spices, Cardamon and Cinnamon use either or use half of each. You can add Nutmeg(kukumanga) for a more complex flavor, be mindful and use like a pinch-ful tho
- To know if your oil is ready drop a piece, if it starts bubbling instantly, then you are good
- If you want more color, deep fry longer but you risk burning your bites here, I know mine turned out pale but I love them that way
- Now for storage, store your mandazi bites in an air-tight container or a plastic bag to preserve moisture and prevent drying out resulting in hardness. Your mandazis will keep just fine on the countertop for up to 2 days, or in the fridge for up to 4 days
- You can prepare your mandazi dough ahead of time and refrigerate it overnight or upto 12 hours and it will be just fine, just make sure it is covered with a cling film to prevent drying out
Nutritional Information
Per 2 Serving
Calories 571
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 48g 62% Saturated Fat 29.1g 145% Cholesterol 128mg 43% Sodium 408mg 18% Total Carbohydrate 250.8g 91% Dietary Fiber 6.8g 24% Total Sugars 59.7g Protein 34.3g
Vitamin D 29mcg 146% Calcium 340mg 26% Iron 12mg 65% Potassium 420mg 9%
Disclaimer
The nutritional information provided is an estimate and may vary based on ingredients, cooking methodology, and quantities used. This should only be used for informational purposes and not for dietary advice.
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Now that you’ve mastered the cooking, enjoy your well-deserved mandazi bites you can’t forget to emphasize the importance of a chef’s hat and the unlimited power of a kneaded dough.
2Kg of flour will generally make you at least 200 mini mandazi bites. Add margarine or butter to your dough if you want even extra soft mandazis. For margarine, the Prestige brand is recommended but if you have Blueband, it works as well
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