Chicken Peanut Salad from Saruni Camp

Kent is just back from an adventure in Kenya. One of the camps he had the pleasure of visiting was Saruni Samburu Camp. It is a designer lodge located 7km north of Samburu National Reserve in Kenya's wild north. Surrounded by 95,000 hectares of private wildlife conservancy and perched on top of a spectacular viewpoint, its four houses and large swimming pool overlook several waterholes where the famous Samburu elephant, leopard, reticulated giraffe, Oryx and Grevy's zebra gather to drink.

The kitchen staff keep everyone well fed so they can concentrate on safari. They were kind enough to share one of their recipes with Kent and it's our pleasure to share it with you!

Chicken Peanut Salad

Ingredients:

1 onion finely chopped
2 tbsp Brown sugar
2 tbsp Olive oil
1 pinch of salt
1 pinch of ground black pepper
½ a packet of coconut milk
1 pinch curry powder
Halved Carrots (fried)
Potatoes, quartered (fried)
Broccoli (boiled)
sliced chicken breast (lightly marinated with oyster sauce and fried)
3 tbsp Peanut butter

Lightly fry the onions until soft and brown then add the salt, pepper, curry powder, coconut milk, brown sugar and peanut butter. Stir until the sauce is thick.

Fry the carrots and potatoes in some olive oil, then add the fried marinated chicken strips and broccoli. As with most recipes, it helps if the carrots and potatoes have been parboiled before they have been fried.

Toss the ingredients until they are well mixed. Season with some dried mixed herbs and add the peanut sauce. Serve warm.

Photos courtesy Saruni Camp

Kent's Kenya trip update #2

After a visit to Joy's Camp in Shaba, we drove two hours to nearby Samburu National Reserve. I have been to this great park a number of times and it never fails to disappoint. Hit hard by a flash flood in March, (check our March blog archives for that story), the park and most of its camps and lodges have recovered nicely. One of the main bridges is still being repaired making tranfers a bit longer than usual.

Samburu is in the homeland of the Samburu people of north central Kenya. Dressing colorfully like their Masai cousins to the south, they are great hosts and guides. On our first game drive we spotted lions, a small leopard, elephants, gerenuk, Grevy's zebra, Somali ostrich and much more.

Our lodging, Saruni Safari Lodge is located about 45 minutes outside the park on a 220,000 acre Samburu community ranch called Kalama. Sitting atop a granite hilltop, it offers incredible views of the surrounding bushland, and on a clear day, the Matthews range and Mt Kenya.

Saruni is undoubtedly the most luxurious lodge in the area. With just four chalets that accommadate up to 12 guests in total, it is both elegant and comfortable. The rooms are huge and each sports a bathtub, outdoor shower, deck and sitting room. Should you visit, bring your appetite because the food is fantastic. At lunch, I took a second helping of the delicious caneloni not realizing it was just the first course (Saruni is Italian owned). Next, there was a tasty lettuce and avocado salad, snow peas and tomatoes, plus a fantastic warm chicken, carrot and potato salad with peanut sauce. There was sorbet for dessert with choice of tea, coffee or espresso!

From Saruni game drives, night drives, nature walks, and village visits are all avaible. The guiding is good and the hosting excellent. Overall, it's a great place, though not ideal for those with mobility issues as the paths are long and steep with lots of steps and sharp drop-offs.

To plan a visit to Joy's in Shaba, check out our Unforgettable Kenya Safari. We have a special of $500 off per person on Unforgettable Kenya for most 2011 departure dates! To visit Saruni Safari Lodge and take advantage of all its fantastic offerings, call us so that we can plan a customized safari for you.

Photos courtesy Saruni Safari Lodge and Kent Redding