How to make Ugandan Bagiya

Bagiyas are a popular Ugandan snack sold on many shops in Uganda. It is packed in small quantities. The smallest quantity costs about Uganda shillings 500. If you are planning to get involved in the Bagiya business in Uganda, you will need very little capital to start this business up.  There is a ready market for snacks in Uganda to be exploited. But first, you will need to learn how to make high-quality Bagiyas. Let’s have a look at how to make Ugandan Bagiya.

What is Ugandan Bagiya?

Ugandan Bagiya is a snack made out of maize flour and deep fried until it is golden yellow or brown in color. They are available in small round shapes that can be short or long.  Let’s have a look at the ingredients we need for making Ugandan Bagiyas.

Ingredient’s for making Ugandan Bagiya 

1 Cup of   Maize flour

1 Cup of Water

1 Tbsp. of butter/margarine

1 egg

3 Tbsp. of Sugar

A handful of fresh lemongrass leaves

½ Tsp. of Vanilla extract             

A pinch of salt

Vegetable Oil for frying

Tips for making perfect Ugandan Bagiyas

here are a few tips you should have in mind before you start making the Bagiyas

• Use a tiny hole on plastic or nozzle to make the perfect bagiyas. A small nozzle will produce small and round bagiyas.
• Wait for the bagiya dough mixture to cool down before adding the egg to prevent it from cooking due to heat. 
• Maintain moderate cooking heat as maize flour burns easily.
• Do not over crowd the pan during the deep frying process to maintain the temperature of the cooking oil.

Step by step process of making Ugandan Bagiyas

1. Add water to a saucepan and add a bunch of fresh lemon grass leaves.
2. bring the water to a boil on a high source of heat. This will help to release the nice lemon grass scent into the water.
3. In a large or medium sized bowl, add the maize flour, sugar and salt and mix well.
4. Remove the boiling fragrant water from the source of heat and from fire and sieve the lemongrass leaves.
5. Pour the hot water into the flour mixture and mix well until there is no maize flour visible.
6. Next add the vanilla and butter to the maize flour dough mixture and mix well.
7. Set this mixture aside to rest and cool down for about 10 minutes.
8. Now add the egg to the cold dough mixture and mix well till a clear batter is achieved.
9. In a dry deep saucepan pour cooking oil and set it on a moderately high source of heat.
10. Drop a tiny piece of dough into the oil to check if it is ready.
11. Place your batter into a plastic bag /Piping gun and pipe it directly into  the vegetable oil.
12. Fry the bagiya till golden brown.
13. Remove the bagiya from the oil and drain on a draining rack and pack it when it has cooled down.
14. Package your bagiyas in bags of appropriate sizes and seal them of tightly to prevent aeration which is not good for them

Next; How to make Ugandan Daddies