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Nigerian snacks » The Nigerian Chin chin recipe you have been searching for!

The Nigerian Chin chin recipe you have been searching for!

Published: August 10, 2017 . Updated: April 21, 2021 by Chichi Uguru . This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our full disclosure here. 413 Comments

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Search no further, this is it. The Nigerian chin chin recipe you have been searching for. Sounds cocky right? But this really is it. Try it and see. Chin chin is a very common Fried West African snack. It is a delightfully tasty crunchy snack.

WARNING: Once you start munching, you would have to be restrained to stop.

Even as this snack is commonly enjoyed in Nigeria, not all chin chins are made equal. Some are overtly sweet, or tasteless, while some are just an oil soaked mess.

Growing up I helped my mom make chinchin a lot during the Christmas season. We always looked forward to making this delightful snack during the Christmas holidays.

Why does my chinchin soak up oil?

One of our readers asked this question in the comments so I decided to update the post to include the answer. Thank you Yemi for taking out time to drop your comment. You are appreciated ❤️

Sometimes you find that your chin chin is soggy or has soaked up a lot of oil here are a few reasons why?

  • The Oil wasn't hot enough.
  • The Oil wasn't enough for the amount of chin chin dough being fried.
  • The Oil was Overcrowded. Overcrowding the oil lowers the oil temperature and we are back to no 1 point above

How to prevent chinchin from soaking up a lot Oil when frying.

  • The oil wasn’t hot enough: Before you frying the chin chin. Always test the heated oil by putting a piece of chin chin in the oil . If oil bubbles and the piece of chin chin comes up immediately then the oil is ready for frying.
  • The Oil wasn't enough for the amount of chin chin dough being fried:
    Always fry your chin chin with enough oil. Frying chin chin requires deep frying which requires enough oil.
  • Overcrowding the oil with dough: Make sure you have enough oil to fry your dough. Too much dough overcrowds the and doesn't allow adequate frying by lowering the temperature of the oil and making the dough soak up oil.

[bctt tweet="WARNING: Once you start munching, you would have to be restrained to stop." username="mydiaspokitch"]

How do I stop the oil used to fry chin chin from bubbling over and spilling?

Most time this happens when you are frying a second batch of the chin chin dough. I have observed that this happens only when my dough is made with butter. When I make chin chin with magerine , i can fry the whole batch with the same batch without having the oil bubble up and spill over.

But since I prefer the texture and taste of chin chin made with butter here are a few tips

  • If you are making a large quantity, use a large pot to fill in oil to accommodate large chin chin dough for each batch then Change the oil after each batch.
  • If you are making a small quantity, Use a large pot to accommodate the amount of oil needed to fry the chin-chin in one batch.

It was part of our travel package. We travelled home to our village (country home) every Christmas. So this chin chin served as our snack and also as gifts to visitors. Trust me we never got tired of munching on these and you too will not. Read warning above.

These are soft and almost crumbly on the inside and crunchy on the outside. So not to worry no jaw breakers here. ?. These little delights are 'CROFT' in my son's words meaning Crunchy and Soft You get the drift right. The young man is a foodie at heart creating a portmanteau for food lol. But if Kamso says this is good, Believe me it is ?

Now let's get to this amazing 'CROFT' chin chin recipe ?

[bctt tweet="Search no further, this is it. The Nigerian chin chin recipe you have been searching for." username="mydiaspokitch"]

Nigerian Chin ChinNigerian Chin ChinNigerian Chin Chin

Recommended Products for making best chin chin

1. Pottella deep square 9.5" copper pan: it has a frying basket, a steamer tray plus you get a free cookbook with it.

2. Frying spoon: This one comes in a set of three. Best value.

3. 32 oz clear plastic storage jars: These come in a set of 6. I reserve 2 for chin-chin and use the rest for storing other pantry staples like oats.

4. Oggi four piece acrylic canister set: Also great for storage.

5. Paper Towel: To absorb excess oil after frying and before storage.

6. Serving bowls: These are perfect to serve your chinchin with.

PIN FOR LATER

Nigerian Chin chin

Chichi Uguru
search no further, this is the chin chin recipe you have searched so long for. Enjoy
4.99 from 59 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe Share by Text
Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 40 mins
Total Time 50 mins
Course Snack
Cuisine West African
Servings 10
Calories 213 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 280g (1 ¾ cup + 2 Tbsp) all purpose flour
  • 82g (⅓ cup) granulated sugar
  • 57g (4 Tbsp) salted butter
  • ½ tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp ground nutmeg
  • 1 large egg
  • ¼ cup evaporated milk
  • Oil for deep frying

Instructions
 

  • Measure and Mix dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
  • Measure and mix wet ingredients together except butter.
  • Add butter to the dry ingredients and mix with your fingers until just combined.
  • Pour in the other wet ingredients and mix together until dough forms. it should form a perfect dough but if its feels a bit stiff, add a Tbsp of water or milk. if it feels too tacky, add a Tbsp or 2 of flour no more. DO NOT over work the dough.
  • Wrap in a saran wrap and allow to rest on the counter for about 5 mins. this allows flavors blend in and develops the gluten which makes it easier during the cutting process
  • Unwrap rested dough, you can roll out all the dough at once since dough is small or you can divide into 2 portions and roll individually. Roll out dough to about a quarter of an inch thick because dough will rise when you fry them.
  • With a knife or pizza cutter or even a dough divider cut dough across vertically and horizontally forming little squares.
  • Put little squares in a bowl and sprinkle a little flour on them and shake to prevent sticking.
  • Heat up oil. Fry till light golden. Remove with a slotted spoon and spread on a paper towel lined tray to cool. Chin chin will be soft when hot but hardens as it cools.

Notes

Nutrition

Calories: 213kcal
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Ebere

    May 10, 2022 at 4:42 am

    Hi Chichi,
    I'm unable to get vegetable or sunflower oil as there is a shortage. I have rapeseed oil, is that a suitable oil to use? Or what other oil would you recommend?
    Thanks.

    Reply
    • Chichi Uguru

      May 10, 2022 at 5:15 am

      Hi Ebere,

      Yes you can!

      Reply
  2. Igwe miracles

    April 12, 2022 at 12:36 pm

    It was a good one thanks

    Reply
  3. Rebecca

    March 25, 2022 at 9:23 pm

    Awesome recipe! Crumbly on the outside soft on the inside, exactly how proper chin chin should be...

    Reply
    • Chichi Uguru

      March 30, 2022 at 7:18 am

      Hi Rebecca!

      Thank you for your awesome feedback. Happy you enjoyed the recipe!

      -Chichi

      Reply
  4. Melody

    March 24, 2022 at 4:35 pm

    I tried it and I loved it.thanks so much ma

    Reply
    • Chichi Uguru

      March 30, 2022 at 7:17 am

      Hi Melody!

      You are welcome! Happy to hear that you loved this recipe! Thanks for your feedback!

      -Chichi

      Reply
  5. Itunu

    January 26, 2022 at 2:51 am

    Hi Chichi!
    Thank you so much for this recipe! It really is the chinchin recipe I've been looking for 😅. Pls if I need to make a much larger batch, do I just multiply the measurements, including the baking powder?

    Reply
  6. Mama Jay

    September 11, 2021 at 6:50 am

    5 stars
    Oooh thank you, did I tell you the chin chin tasted so good people were asking for more. Well, a couple of them were ready to pay me to make some for them, I just had to direct them to your page.

    Reply
    • Chichi Uguru

      September 11, 2021 at 9:49 am

      Hi Mama Jay,

      Thank you so much for your feedback and for sending your friends to my blog. I appreciate that. Happy you found the recipe helpful. Enjoy 😉

      - Chichi

      Reply
  7. Favour

    September 08, 2021 at 6:10 am

    Pls Chichi am still waiting for my response based on the peanut aspect. Thanks

    Reply
  8. Favour

    September 07, 2021 at 5:06 am

    Hi Chichi
    ,Pls I tried making peanut twice but it wasn't very smooth. After frying, and allowing it to be cool, though it was crunchy but the outer body was white as if I sprinkle another flour to it. Pls my question is what makes some peanut smooth and no whitish subtance on it.

    Reply
  9. Favour

    September 06, 2021 at 8:17 am

    5 stars
    Hi chi chi
    I tried it and my chin chin was soft and crunchy though I used simas margarine. Thanks very much.

    Reply
    • Chichi Uguru

      September 06, 2021 at 8:29 am

      Happy to hear this Favour! Thank you for letting me know 😃

      Reply
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