Servings : Makes approx 30
One of the most famous delicacies of the coast of Kenya (and most parts of East Africa) are these crunchy dumplings in a sweet sugar syrup known as kaimati or kalimati. They make for a delightful snack, enjoyable at any time; as a starter sweet before a meal, for a light dessert with coffee, for breakfast if you have a sweet tooth, with tea in the evening, midnight sweet craving etc etc etc.
I especially love to have these at iftar time in Ramadhan. Even if you’ve never heard of them before, but have a sweet tooth or enjoy the occasional sweet snack, you MUST try this easy recipe! Some people like the sugar syrup to form a solid coating over each dumpling, as in my recipes for mitai (sweet diamonds). I on the other hand prefer these to be lightly coated with a slightly sticky syrup as shown in the photo.
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose/plain flour
- 1/2 cup yogurt plus a little water
- 1 tbsp. ghee or butter
- 1 level tsp. instant yeast
Ingredients for Sugar Syrup
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 tsp. powdered cardamom
- lemon rinds or saffron threads (whichever flavour you prefer)
Instructions
Boil syrup and cool completely
Mix the flour with all the above ingredients and beat thoroughly with your hand. It should be thick enough for you to be able to pick without it flowing down between your fingers, but not so thick that it’s a dough. Not runny and yet not too thick.
Cover and let it rise for about half an hour. Touch some oil with your fingertips and mix the mixture again.
Heat oil, then pick small portions and drop in the hot oil, then immediately lower the heat and fry on very low heat, stirring the Kaimatis continuously so that they color on all sides and get super crunchy.
From heat place directly into the cooled sugar syrup.
Serve and enjoy!
Hi, no do not use milk, the recipe needs yoghurt. Not sure what went wrong but give it another try and please follow the recipe accurately for best results. 🙂 Half cup of any liquid would be 100ml.
By yoghurt u mean maziwa mala/lala?
Yes that is right.
Juz prepared this for my guests n I scored great points, thnx a mil, U rooock!!!
Salaams Fauzia,
It is Ali again, and just wanted to let you know that my kalimati’s turned out awesome! The chashni went all the way inside and were crispy. Thank you very much for your recipe. Are you from Dar es Salaam?
Thanks,
Ali
W/Salaam, thanks for the awesome feedback! No I am not from DSM but have been there countless times and love the beautiful country. 🙂
Can i put both maziwa lala and eggs?
No need of eggs for this recipe.
Aoa fauzia what is white
Aoa fauzia what is white flour
Plain/All purpose flour.
Plain/All purpose flour.
asalam aleikum fauzia
asalam aleikum fauzia,nimejaribu kupika hii recipee leo but ndani hazikuiva.plz help wat cud hav gone wrong?
W/Salaam, umetumia hamira? Na
W/Salaam, umetumia hamira? Na wakati wa kuzikaanga, moto labda ulikuwa juu sana?
Salam fauzia, the website was
Salam fauzia, the website was out of order. N i was stuck lol
FKF is back..enjoy
FKF is back..enjoy
S a sis. I made the Klamaths
S a sis. I made the Klamaths yesterday n it turned out excellent. Just that when I mixed it in the syrup, it got stuck..i had to remove one at a time with my fingers n put it on the serving bowl. pls assist…
How long did you boil the
How long did you boil the syrup? Did you stir it during boiling?
Well how many min should i
Well how many min should i boil it for? Yes I stirred it all the time none stop.
That was the problem. You
That was the problem. You should never stir sugar syrup once it starts boiling. It makes it crystalise.
Sa Fauzia
Sa Fauzia
What should the consistency of the syrup be? One thread or two thread consistency. Your response is greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Two thread. 🙂
Two thread. 🙂
hi Fauzia
hi Fauzia
i normaly mix mine with very heavy coconut milk. yday i tried ur recipe wit yogurt n ghee n they r amazzziiiiing n very crispy:D
jazakallah
made it, although they didnt
made it, although they didnt turn out to be golden there were more brown i think because of the heat and hot oil but otherwise they were perfect taste,sugar,everything thank you
AA I love ur site, want know
AA I love ur site, want know if I can use self rising yeast in place of instant yeast
W/Salaam, thanks! SR flour
W/Salaam, thanks! SR flour has baking powder, not yeast. So it cannot be used in place of yeast.
I dunno wat happend
I dunno wat happend immediately I put them into the hot oil they swelled up n got holes they turned out suuuper oily… why…I halfed the recipe*
Are you sure you halved ALL
Are you sure you halved ALL the ingredients and not just some of them? Sounds like the measurements were off or the oil was not hot enough.
I measured properly that im
I measured properly that im sure of n I had forgotten the oil…so it was literally smoking hot…it could be I let it rise too long maybe??
Maybe, the only way to know
Maybe, the only way to know for sure is to try the recipe again. Let me know how it goes.
Ok so I retried the kaimati n
Ok so I retried the kaimati n I ddnt let them rise too long…turned out fabulous!!