This sweet, crunchy, African Chin Chin recipe is so delicious and it’s easy to make! It can also be customized and is the perfect snack for kids and special occasions.
Table of Contents
About This Recipe
Chin chin is a popular West African fried snack that is similar to Scandinavian klenat. Think of chin chin as mini biscuits. It is bite-sized, golden brown in color, and sweet in flavour. You’ll often find it served on plates as a snack/starter at African parties. Chin chin is also popular amongst kids too because of it’s size and sweetness.
I was first introduced to chin chin as a child as my Mum absolutely loves it. Whenever we go to parties she always makes it a priority to taste the chin chin as all chin chin is not created equal! Like most traditional recipes the best chin chin can be found in Nigeria but my Mum and I needed a solution to her chin chin craving so we decided to create our own special recipe!
There are lots of different types of chin chin. Some are soft while others are crunchy and some are sweet while others are spicy! You can also add cinnamon, nutmeg, and coconut. My favorite type of chin chin has a hint of coconut and is what I’ll be sharing today.
African Chin Chin Ingredients
- All-purpose flour: Sieve all-purpose flour before mixing the dry ingredients to get rid of any lumps and dirt.
- Sugar: Use granulated sugar for this recipe.
- Baking powder: Add 1/8 a tsp of baking powder if you want crunchy chin chin. If you prefer soft chin chin then add 1/4 tsp or more.
- Nutmeg: Nutmeg adds delicious warm, nutty notes to the chin chin. Grate a whole nutmeg or use ground nutmeg.
- Coconut flakes (optional): As I love coconut chin chin I added some desiccated coconut flakes to this recipe to give it a tropical twist.
- Egg: I added one egg to this recipe. However, if you want your chin chin to be very hard and crunchy then do not add eggs.
- Milk: To get even more of a coconut flavor I used coconut milk but you can use any milk of your choice.
- Butter: Use unsalted butter for this recipe, cut it into equal-sized cubes and make sure it is cold.
- Oil: You can use vegetable or sunflower oil to cook the chin chin. However, if you want coconut flavored chin chin then use coconut oil.
Equipment
Rolling pin: You will need a rolling pin to roll the chin chin dough flat. It should be about 1/5 inches thick as the chin chin puffs a bit when it is fried.
Mixing bowl: Use a mixing bowl to mix the ingredients together.
Pizza cutter: It is best to use a pizza cutter to cut the chin chin into your desirable shape. I have used a knife before and it took a lot longer. However, if you don’t have a pizza cutter you can use a knife.
How to Make African Chin Chin?
- Combine dry ingredients: Grab a medium-sized bowl. Add 3 cups of all-purpose flour, 2/3 cup of sugar, 1/8 tsp of baking powder, 1/4 tsp of nutmeg, and 3-4 tbsp of coconut flakes to the bowl and mix until well combined.
- Rubbing method: Then, grab ¼ cup of cold butter straight from the fridge and make sure the butter is cut into equal-sized small cubes. Add the butter to the flour mix and rub the butter and flour together using your fingertips.The mixture should look like breadcrumbs. You can also use a food processor for this step.
- Combine wet and dry ingredients: Next, mix 1 egg and 2/3 cup of milk in a separate bowl. Pour the wet ingredients into the butter and flour mixture and mix it with your hand or a knife until the mixture forms a dough.
- Knead dough: Once the dough has formed dust flour on a surface and knead the dough until smooth, sticky and well combined. Then, use a rolling pin to flatten the dough. It should be about 1/5 inches thick. Use a pizza cutter to cut the chin chin into equal-sized cubes or any shape you desire (see photo below).
- Fry chin chin: Heat oil in a saucepan or in a deep fryer and cook chin chin until golden brown. Be careful not to add too much chin chin to the oil as you do not want it to get stuck together.
- Leave chin chin to cool: Add cooked chin chin to a plate with paper towels to remove excess oil. Leave to cool completely and serve!
Top Tips
- Texture: My Mum and I tried this recipe 3 times until they came out perfect. The first time we made them we added 1/4 tsp of baking soda and the chin chin came out soft and cakey. This is fine if you like this kind of chin chin but if you want a biscuit-like recipe then add less or none at all!
- Dough: The dough should be smooth, sticky, and firm but not too wet.
- Milk: You can use full-fat milk, low-fat milk, or plant-based milk for this recipe depending on your preference. Be aware that the type of milk you use will affect the taste of the chin chin.
- Sugar: Feel free to increase or decrease the amount of sugar that you add to this recipe.
- Butter: It is very important that the butter is cold and straight from the fridge in order to achieve the best dough.
- Oil: I used sunflower oil to cook the chin chin. However, if you want a stronger coconut flavor then cook the chin chin in coconut oil. You can also use vegetable oil too.
- Plain Chin Chin: Our recipe includes some coconut flakes and coconut milk as coconut chin chin is my favorite! However, you can use normal milk instead and skip the coconut flakes if you want the plain traditional chin chin.
- Flavor variations: Chin chin is such a fun recipe because there are LOTS of flavor variations. You can add some grounded pepper to spice things up or add cinnamon, vanilla, or cocoa powder for chocolate chin chin!
- Batch: It is very easy to double or triple this recipe if you need to feed a crowd!
FAQs
Start by mixing all of the dry ingredients together until they are well combined. Then, add cold butter chunks to the flour mix and rub the butter and flour together using your fingertips. The mixture should look like breadcrumbs. Next, mix the wet ingredients together (egg and milk) in a separate bowl. Pour the wet ingredients into the butter and flour mixture and mix it with your hand or a knife until the mixture forms a dough. Once the dough has formed dust flour on a surface and knead the dough until well combined. Then, use a rolling pin to flatten the dough. It should be about 1/5 inches thick. Use a pizza cutter to cut the chin chin and cook in hot oil until golden brown.
Yes, it can but how much you use depends on whether you want soft chin chin or hard crunch chin chin.
Store chin chin in an air tight jar or container at room temperature for 3-4 days. You can also use a zip lock bag.
Chin chin is a golden-brown bite sized West African snack. It tastes similar to biscuits and is normally eaten as a snack or served during special occasions.
More Tasty Nigerian Recipes
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African Chin Chin Recipe
Equipment
- Medium sized bowl
- Rolling Pin
- Pizza Cutter
Ingredients
- 3 cups of all-purpose flour
- 2/3 cup of sugar
- 1/8 tsp of baking powder
- ¼ tsp of nutmeg
- 1 egg
- 2/3 cup of coconut milk
- Coconut flakes
- ¼ cup of butter cold
- Oil for frying
Instructions
- Grab a medium-sized bowl. Add 3 cups of all-purpose flour, 2/3 cup of sugar, 1/8 tsp of baking powder, 1/4 tsp of nutmeg, and 3-4 tbsp of coconut flakes to the bowl and mix until well combined.
- Then, grab ¼ cup of cold butter straight from the fridge and make sure the butter is but into equal-sized small cubes. Add the butter to the flour mix and rub the butter and flour together using your fingertips. The mixture should look like breadcrumbs. You can also use a food processor for this step.
- Next, mix 1 egg and 2/3 cup of milk in a separate bowl. Pour the wet ingredients into the butter and flour mixture and mix it with your hand or a knife until the mixture forms a dough.
- Once the dough has formed dust flour on a surface and knead the dough until smooth, sticky and well combined. Then, use a rolling pin to flatten the dough. It should be about 1/5 inches thick. Use a pizza cutter to cut the chin chin into equal-sized cubes or any shape you desire.
- Heat oil in a saucepan or in a deep fryer and cook chin chin until golden brown. Be careful not to add too much chin chin to the oil as you do not want it to get stuck together.
- Add cooked chin chin to a plate with paper towels to remove excess oil. Leave to cool completely and serve!
Video
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