Chips Mayai (French Fries Omelet) – A Staple of Tanzanian Junk Food

By Mark Wiens 28 Comments
A plate of chips mayai in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania
A plate of chips mayai in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania

Chips mayai (also known as chipsi mayai) is one of the most widely available and popular Tanzanian street foods in the country.

Chips, is of course another word for French fries, and mayai is the Kiswahili word for eggs.

Together it’s French fries and eggs, or to put it more clearly, a French fries omelet.

If you want to eat chips mayai, this is what you need to look for
If you want to eat chips mayai, this is what you need to look for

In Tanzania, anytime you see that black wok sitting out front of a restaurant or street food stall, hovering over flames, with yellow oil bubbling up, you can be pretty sure they serve chips mayai.

You’ll find it everywhere from Dar Es Salaam to Arusha and even in small little village dining establishments.

Some chips poking out
Some chips poking out

I’m going to be honest, for myself, chips mayai is not the most exciting thing in the world.

It consists of a handful of French fries that are tossed into a frying pan and a few eggs are cracked on top to create a hearty oil and potato filled omelet.

Sure, it tastes pretty good, but it tastes exactly like you’d expect it to: French fries and eggs combined.

Browned crispy section of omelet
Browned crispy section of omelet

One thing you can be certain of is that any plate of chips mayai will be greasy – no way to avoid oil!

A marriage of French fries and eggs
A marriage of French fries and eggs

Some of the French fries in chips mayai are crunchy while others are soft with only slight crunchiness on the edges. The egg, also fried in a little more oil, sometimes gets a little crunchy too.

This particular plate of chips mayai I ate was served with a side of kachumbari (tomatoes and onions), hot chillies, and the all necessary bottle of East African style tomato chili sauce – kind of like ketchup, with a little extra spice, and a little less acidic.

Chipsi mayai!
Chipsi mayai!

Adding lots of tomato chili sauce, kachumbari, and chili peppers improves any plate of chips mayai.

Overall, I much prefer to eat a full Tanzanian food meal of rice or ugali with fish and beans, but chips mayai has its place in the repertoire of Tanzanian food and makes a tasty and filling snack.

Price – most places should cost 1,500 – 2,000 TZS ($0.90 – $1.21)

28 comments. I'd love to hear from you!

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    6 months ago

    good vertu

  • KL Princess

    1 year ago

    Chips mayai, the Tanzanian street food dish, is a humble omelet consisting of chips (fries) and mayai (the Swahili word for eggs). The combination of vegetables can vary, sometimes prepared with just chips and eggs, or the addition of aromatics.

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  • Fam

    3 years ago

    Love this idea. Feel I’ve missed out as I’m from Tanzania, Zanzibar really and never had one but I did leave over 50yrs ago!

  • Ruhi Singh

    3 years ago

    It looks very delicious.

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  • sankar singh

    3 years ago

    spicy breakfast ….lol

  • Terrance Buchanan

    3 years ago

    Yes, if you are travelling so far, then you should be eating the traditional meals of the place. And fries and omlet are pretty much available anywhere.

  • Lily La

    10 years ago

    I’ve never thought about putting together the egg and chips into an omelet.. even if I eat them separately on one plate. I did try putting them together into an omelet after seeing your YouTube video on this, and it was great! (although probably not as great with the Tanzanian ingredients and sauces).

    • Mark Wiens

      10 years ago

      Hey Lily, awesome to hear you made it, glad you enjoyed it. I’m sure it was delicious!

  • Raj kumar

    10 years ago

    I love eating omelet cooked in different methods…………….. I always at home try to make omelet with different things…………. Even I love sweet omelet which will be very tasty.

  • Renuka

    10 years ago

    Wow…looks like a great breakfast option! Yummy, even though it’s oily!

  • Zara @ Backpack ME

    10 years ago

    It looks yummy!
    It reminds me of Spanish Omelet in Spain, which is basically slow fried potatoe cubes omelet – sometimes with onions too. I don’t know why “Spanish omelet” abroad always includes tomatoes, bell peppers and a bunch of other stuff..
    Anyway.. I’d totally give Chips mayai a go!!

  • Anwesha

    10 years ago

    I am not a big omelette person, but something about the pictures sets my stomach a-growling…

  • Mike | Earthdrifter

    10 years ago

    Interesting to read about a staple street food. I’d try it, eat half, then probably give the other half to a homeless person.

    Love those huge street woks.

  • Adrian Fleur

    10 years ago

    Ughhhh! Nooooo! I haven’t had lunch and I’m sitting here drooling over this! Why does it look so terribly good? =)

    • Mark Wiens

      10 years ago

      Haha, thanks for checking it out Adrian, hope you had a good lunch!