Eat2Explore Review: Exploring Kenya through Food

When it comes to bringing our “Around the World” geography lessons to life, nothing compares to a hands-on experience. Whether it’s learning a new game, listening to traditional music, creating art inspired by a culture, or cooking and tasting authentic dishes, each of these activities makes learning much more engaging and meaningful to our family. While we may not be able to travel to Kenya ourselves, we were thrilled to bring a taste of it home by adding the Eat2Explore Kenya cooking box to our Africa unit study as part of the Global Explorers Club.

Disclosure: I received a complimentary box from Eat2Explore to review, but all thoughts shared here are entirely my own. This post also includes affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you make a purchase, at no extra cost to you.

Why We Chose Eat2Explore for Our Africa Unit Study

At the Global Explorers Club, we believe that education should be an exciting journey that brings families closer together. Our goal is to connect learning with real-life experiences, inspiring a love of discovery while nurturing respect and appreciation for diverse cultures. Eat2Explore’s commitment to bringing families together through culinary adventures aligns beautifully with our family’s educational values.

We are committed to bringing families together through the exploration of diverse countries, cultures, and cuisines.

Eat2explore

Just like our Global Explorers curriculum, Eat2Explore’s approach turns education into a shared adventure, connecting families to new places and perspectives, one recipe at a time.

Unboxing the Eat2Explore Kenya Kit

My kids were in for a real treat when they first opened our Eat2Explore Kenya box. They discovered a special Eat2Explore passport and world map, a Kenya flag pin and sticker, and a finger guard to help protect tiny hands when cutting vegetables and fruits.

Each of the recipe cards was colorful and included a shopping list, plus clear, step-by-step instructions, as well as fun facts about the ingredients and the dishes plus their their cultural significance.

I really appreciated that each recipe card also includes a vegetarian option, making it easier to accommodate every family’s unique dietary preferences while still being able to experience the authentic flavors of Kenyan cuisine.

The box also included educational materials about Kenya’s culture and geography, which was useful to us as we studied Kenya over the course of several weeks.

Cooking Class for Kids: Eat2Explore Kenya

For our first Kenyan culinary adventure, we opted to make Githeri, a vegetarian stew, along with Ugali and Sukuma Wiki. My kids are excited to cook Nyama, a Kenyan beef stew, in the future — especially after having tasted the Githeri that uses the same spice mixture. We decided to go with the vegetarian option this time since we were preparing this meal for lunch on a school day.

And here’s where I was surprised! When Eat2Explore mentions three recipes, they truly mean three complete meals!

Each recipe included in the Eat2Explore Kenya box comes with a main entrée and accompanying side dishes. In this case, we enjoyed Githeri (a protein-rich stew), Ugali (a carbohydrate), and Sukuma Wiki (a nutritious vegetable). I absolutely loved this convenience! It saved me the hassle of searching online for side dish recipes since Eat2Explore had already assembled a complete, healthy meal for us to prepare and eat.

How to Cook Nyama, Ugali, and Sukuma Wiki with Kids

My two children, ages 7 and 10, helped prepare all three recipes included on our first recipe card: Githeri (the vegetarian version of Nyama), Ugali, and Sukuma Wiki. First, they worked together to prep the vegetables needed, with my youngest preparing the kale and cutting the carrots, while my oldest cut the spinach and got the beans and corn ready. Neither volunteered to cut up the onion, so I took on that task, sparing them the inevitable tears.

If you have young children still developing their cutting skills, the finger guard included in the Kenya box is a fantastic tool to protect their little fingers. It’s perfect for giving them confidence and added safety as they practice. My own children are now comfortable using knives on their own, but the finger guard can certainly be a helpful step along the way!

Next, my oldest asked to cook the Githeri. She sauteed some onions in oil and then added the Nyama spice packet that’s included in the Eat2Explore: Kenya box. Then she proceeded to add the remaining stew ingredients: carrots, beans, crushed tomatoes, and corn.

Once the Githeri had been simmering for about 10 minutes, she began cooking the Sukuma Wiki. She’s a fan of greens, so this was the recipe she was most excited to try out, especially since it included garlic!

Meanwhile, my youngest asked to prepare the Ugali. Eat2Explore made it easy. All she had to do was measure out the butter, milk, and water, bring to a simmer, then add the Ugali mix and continue to stir until it thickened.

All together, the entire meal only took us about 30 minutes to prepare, give or take. If you opt to prepare Nyama instead of Githeri, it’ll take about twice as long since the beef will need to cook longer.

The meal was quite tasty! My oldest especially loved the Sukuma Wiki, and it’s definitely a recipe we’ll be making regularly—especially since it was so quick and easy to prepare. My youngest was a fan of the Ugali. Full disclosure, though—after a couple of bites, she added a spoonful of strawberry preserves, saying it reminded her of Cream of Wheat.

I couldn’t convince either of them to eat the meal in true Kenyan style, though — using their hands instead of utensils! Maybe next time they’ll give it a try, but for now, we’ll count it as a win that they enjoyed the flavors and the cooking experience!

Would We Recommend Eat2Explore? Final Thoughts on Our Kenyan Culinary Experience

Absolutely! We highly recommend Eat2Explore for several reasons:

• We love their message of inclusivity, cultural awareness, and the emphasis on cultivating family memories together in the kitchen.
• The convenience of the boxes is fantastic, especially with multiple recipes for complete meals in each kit, making it easy to explore different foods.
• The hard-to-find ingredients are provided, along with a simple shopping list for any additional items.
• Each box includes a new cooking tool that adds to the fun for kids.
• The country flag pins and cooking passports for children help make the entire experience even more engaging.

In our opinion, Eat2Explore provides a fun way to explore food from around the world together as a family. Whether you use it as a standalone activity or integrate it into the Global Explorers curriculum, the Eat2Explore experience can definitely inspire kids to learn more about different cultures and food from around the world.

It also encourages children to step out of their comfort zones and try new flavors. If you have a picky eater (like one of mine), it’s a great way to gently expand their palate and maybe even spark a curiosity for trying new dishes—even if it sometimes requires a little extra strawberry preserves!

We can’t wait to dive into the next two meals included in our Kenya box as we wrap up our study of the country over the next week!

Here are just a few ways to integrate Eat2Explore into the Global Explorers curriculum:

1. Purchase an individual box to go alongside one of our country studies, like Explore Mexico to complement our Mexico unit study.
2. Purchase the Explore the Americas bundle to use with our North America and South America unit studies or the Explore Kenya, Explore Ethiopia, and Explore Morocco kits to use with our Africa unit study, giving children the opportunity to experience a wide variety of dishes from different cultures within a region.
3. Purchase the Holiday Explorer Bundle or the Holiday Baking Bundle World to enhance our Christmas Around the World unit study.