By Chin Chin Recipe – Sweet crunchy deep-fried snacks made with flour, sugar, milk, butter, and aromatic spice powder like nutmeg or cinnamon.
Chin Chin Recipe
Chin chin is a very popular Nigerian snack and it also comes in a savory version too which is more popular in Ghana (a west African country). The savory version uses a lot of onion, ginger with chili powder.
It’s very common to see this snack being made during festive seasons in Nigeria but since my kids love it so much I make it every now and then.
People have their preferences ranging from the really hard ones to the really soft ones. My preference is just in-between and that’s the recipe I have shared below.
I have also given some tips below on how you can make the soft or the hard version so you could choose your preference.
How to make Chin chin
Chin chin can be easily prepared at home without much efforts. All the ingredients you need are all pantry staples and everything comes together in about 30 minutes from start to finish.
In this recipe, I have added cinnamon and cayenne pepper just for a little bit zing!
You will need:
-
Milk
-
Flour
-
Sugar
-
Eggs
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Butter
-
Salt
-
Cayenne pepper (optional)
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Baking powder
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Cinnamon or nutmeg
-
Oil for frying
These snacks are great for teatime, movie nights, game nights or anytime snack
How to check if the oil is hot enough for frying
To check if the oil is hot enough, drop a small piece of dough inside the oil.
- If the dough stays at the bottom for a long time, then the oil needs to be heated up a little more.
- If the dough rises too rapidly, then you may need to turn down the heat a little bit; otherwise, the chin chi will brown too quickly.
- If the dough gradually floats to the surface of the oil, then the oil is just right.
Recipe Notes:
- Don’t be in a haste to eat your chin chin, let it cool down properly in order for you to enjoy the crunch.
- If you are using powdered milk just dissolve 2 Tbs of powder milk in 8Tbsp of water then use the required amount in the recipe (6 to 7 Tbsp) and drink the rest!
- If you plan to store your chin chin, be sure to let it cool down completely before storing it in an airtight container. This will make the chin chin remain crisp and last longer.
Chin chin variations
- If you want the super-soft chin chin with little to no crunch then add 1 extra tablespoon of butter and an extra 1/4 tsp of baking powder
- If you are a fan of the super hard chin chin leave out the Egg and the baking powder; at this point, your dough will be hard but if you find it too hard to work then add about 1/2 to 1 tablespoon of milk to make it workable.
Making small chops for a party? Add these Eggless Nigerian Buns.
Chin chin
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- A pinch of Salt
- 1/4 teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1 egg large
- 5 to 6 Tbsp Milk
- 2 1/2 Tbsp Butter melted
- vegetable oil for frying
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon or nutmeg
Instructions
- Mix the Flour, baking powder, Sugar, and Nutmeg together in a Bowl
- Add the Egg, Melted Butter and Milk to the dry mixture and mix together until a dough is formed and knead the dough for a couple of minutes (about 2 to 4 minutes)
- Roll the dough it out into a thin sheet of about a 1/4 to 1/6 inch thickness and use a pizza cutter or a knife to cut the dough into tiny pieces as shown in the video above
- Preheat some oil - enough to deep fry the chin chin and fry until golden brown.
- Allow to cool completely before serving. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Tried this recipe to make chinchin for the very first time, came out perfect and crunchy ….my kids loved it so much didn’t last 2 days… I have made chinchin 3 times in less than 2 weeks .. I feel like a chinchin pro right now 😁😁😁… Thank you for sharing
Wow, that’s amazing, and you’re so welcome😊. Three batches in less than two weeks says it all! We’re thrilled the recipe turned out perfectly and that your kids enjoyed it so much.
Amazng recipe but maybe next time put the history of what theyre eating so ppl know how what theyre making originted
You are right, Yusra. Thank you for that thoughtful suggestion! I always try to share as much background as I can about the recipes, but sometimes I don’t have the full history especially with dishes that have many variations and cultural influences. I will definitely keep your suggestion in mind and include more about the origins whenever possible.
Nice. Would try it out soon. Thanks
Looking forward to your feedback, Felicita.
Ma please the butter is it the o e we use of to eat bread?
Not exactly! The butter used for spreading on bread is usually soft table butter or margarine. It has more moisture and is less firm. For chinchin, I used baking butter like unsalted butter or baking margarine because it gives a crispier texture.
That said, you can use bread butter if that’s all you have, but the chinchin might turn out a bit softer.
Simple and tasty recipe. I just made some a few minutes ago.
Good morning my favorite chef your recipes is always my run to whenever I want to make pastries cos you always give a well detailed explanation.
My chin chin came out nice 💜
Thank you, Anthony.
I just tried this recipe yesterday. It was perhaps,. the best I have tried. Love it.
Thank you, Bawo
Good morning ma pls what can I add to my chin chin to make it crunchy and rise
This is the best recipe I have used so far. Thank you for sharing this knowledge.
That’s great, Ima Jones
Oh, ma this is so lovely, I love your teaching,
Thank you so much Mrs\Miss Lola
You are welcome, Timileyin.
Thanks very much for this. May He reward u in abundant.
You are welcome.
Mrs/miss Lola just came across your page and only the chin chin recipe and the kind of explanation you gave made me love it….I will definitely go through your page so I can learn more
Thanks alot most especially for the nutrient content
You are welcome,Tessy.
Hello Mme Lola, you are great chef. I learnt most of Nigerian recipes from your page. keep doing the good work
Thank you Ubaydah!
Dear Chef Lola,
I would love to surprise my Nigerian partner and make these for him for the holidays, but I’m terrified of heating oil by myself. Can I bake these in the oven and in what temperature and for how long?
Thank you if you can help me 🧡
Yes, Ella you can bake it. Put parchment paper and arrange the chin-chin on it. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (190 degrees Celsius).Bake for 10 to 15 minutes.Flip the pieces over using a spatula. Continue baking them for another 15 to 20 minutes, or until both sides have become golden brown.Remove the chin chin from the oven when done and allow them to cool slightly for 3 to 5 minutes on the baking sheet.
I added too much baking powder a d butter ,my chinchin is crumbling,how can I correct it to achieve hard chinchin?. Should I add more flour to the dough?
So sorry about this Mary. Yes, you can add more flour. You should also adjust other ingredients to get a flavourful and yummy chichin.
Thanks Miss Lola…may God continue to strengthen you.
Amen!…Thank you.
Dear Lola
thanks for sharing this important recipe. God Bless you
You’re welcome.
You didn’t add water at all?
I will try this recipe and give you feedback
I will be expecting your feedback
I’m really really in love with your kitchen with what I’m seeing the main things you’re doing you’re doing great. And i wish I can achieve it through this preparation I will be very glad.Thank you. may God improve your hand work
Amen. Thank you so much, Smart.
Ma, what about how to do peanut burger snacks
Ma,alternatively I don’t oven how can bake
You can also fry it, Precious.
Wow 😲 I love your explanation ❣️ thanks
Thank you,Munirah
Wow😲 so explanatory I love this and I’m going to try it
Glad you think so! Looking forward to your feedback when you try it
I am a self taught baker. I learnt by using your recipes and watching your videos. I made chin chin for the first time today and it was yummy. My kids loved it. For Christmas, we will double the recipe because the one I made was not enough. Wish i could add a picture. Thank you so much.
Absolutely a kid-friendly snack. I am happy you enjoyed it.😂
Thank you for this and others Chef Lola. I’ll be like you some day😊Love from Cameroon .
Thank you, mimi.
I really appreciate the help you cause I was having. Little difficulty so finally I have seen the answer
I’m glad
Please can I use east?
No, Rejoice. Yeast doesn’t work for this recipe. Please, use baking powder.
Hello everyone my name is darasimi.Can you accept me to your group.Welcome to my little lively kitchen and welcome to my world lively kitchen and welcome to my adventure for cooking.
These are some of my favorite food.
1.shawama.
2.spanish rice.
3.jollof rice.
4.fried chicken.
5.fried rice.
6.meatpie.
7.fish pie.
8.fish roll.
9.gala.
10.bread and tea.
11.bread and egg.
Nice to meet you, Darasimi.
Thanks for the information it has been helpful
Awesome recipe Lola. T for thanks!!😄😄
I doubled the recipe ( I had exactly 4&1/2 cups of flour) but it was a tad sticky ( I may have added excess milk) and I was out of flour. I improvised with corn flour which I had at home and let me tell you it isn’t even cold yet and I have lost almost half of the batch to the kids. I added some cayenne pepper powder for some heat. Now back to my chin-chin before these little monsters gobble it all up.
Thank you Soso for your kind words and for sharing your experience with the recipe! I’m glad to hear that you enjoyed it and that your improvisation with corn flour worked out well!.
Can I bake with this recipe? Pls it’s urgent
Sorry for the late reply. You can bake it.
Wow this is really great thanks I will try the one I like here
Is nutmeg a must ???
No, it’s not. You can use cinnamon or vanilla or skip entirely.
Hello Chef Lola,
Thank you so much for this recipe. I am very excited to try it!
Please I have a question about the oil foaming up while frying chin-chin. The last time I made chin-chin, the oil foamed so much that it overflowed and set my cooker on fire. I was so traumatised that I haven’t tried it again, and that was 3 years ago! Do you have any tips for if that happens or what may have caused it?
Thank you!
Sorry about that. Avoid using old oil to fry your chin-chin. Use oil made for deep frying; low-quality oil foam a lot. I will suggest that you avoid overloading the pan with too much batter. Use a pan that is big and deep enough. Lastly, avoid overheating the oil.
Have always been a fan of your recipe Lola
If its not yours then I won’t try it
PERIOD
Will try it and get back to you with feed back🥰🥰🥰
I’ve learnt alot from this page especially from the tips thanks for sharing
Can’t wait to try it out 😋😋
The recipe for chin chin is superb thank
You are welcome 🙂
@Chioma,yes it is
Thanks for this recipe, I tried it and it was perfect and I love your tips on preference too.
Hi Chef Lola, thank you for this recipe. I found I used baking soda instead of baking powder, what effect will this have please and can it be remedied?
Please can I refrigerate chin chin dough overnight
Hmm…I haven’t tried refrigerating it overnight but I guess it should still work as long as it comes down to room temperature before frying it.
Yes but u most make sure the dough is not very cooled
I really love your recipes
Fantabulous
I am definitely going to try this recipe tomorrow 😊 I love it already
Thank you so much. You have really saved the situation, I didn’t use to get it right before.
That’s so good to hear. 😊😊😊😊😊😊
Thanks ma u Recipe is the best
Thanks for your recipes 😊😊😊👍👍👍
Is really helpful and understandable
Please ma can I add extra butter to an already made dough if I find out that the dough is hard?
You are to much for this lecturer!thank you so much
You are welcome and thanks for the compliment. 😊😊😊
Nice I love it🥰👌👌
WOW so easy
Hello Chef Lola,
Pls may I have your permission to use your chin chin picture for a project?
Thank you.
Yes, you are free as long as due credit is given 🙂
Wow!!! This is amazing, good job
Wow!
Easy recipes just as I needed it
Thanks
Wow, I just love u ma and all ur recipes,u make things d easiest way but it do come out catching d heart. Thanks. I always use ur recipe for anything I want to do ooo
Thank you for the high praises Muminat.
I love it
That’s Good..tried n it came out good…
Thanks for the feedback Favour 🙂
I love this recipe 😍😍
Thanks alot for the process in which have learnt to prepare chin Chin
Thanks… I have a question
Can I leave a Chin chin dough overnight? I’m tired already, so I want to know if I can continue tomorrow
Hi Juliana, I apologize because I know this is coming late. It should be fine in the fridge but leave it to come o room temperature before frying it.
Thanks Lola
Hello Lola , you didn’t mention the quantity of nutmeg /cinnamon to be used..
I made it yesterday and doubled the recipe so I added 2tsbp of cinnamon, my dough was a little hard, I added a little more milk and the result was fabulous and quite crunchy.
My kids wanted to finish it all yesterday and hubby loved it esp the crunchiness..
Thanks for the recipe…
Thanks, Tilda for the awesome feedback!… I have updated the recipe to make it clearer. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.
Thanks for this recipe dear. Your chin chin looks delicious.
Please can I also use whole wheat flour to make it.
Yes, you can use wheat flour but the measurements will slightly vary because wheat flour is harder than all-purpose flour.
Thanks for recipe Lola
Thanks Chef Lola for recipe and video. God bless
Thanks it was helpful❤️
I’m glad 🙂
Can I bake my chin chin? And how do I go about it. Thank you
Thanks chef Lola for d recipe. I want to learn how to make egg roll, puff, sausage, meat pie etc
You are welcome. All the recipes are on this site. Just type the recipe in the search bar, you will find them.
Thanks for ur help
Very good, sharp and inciting and educative.
Thanks for the recipe, it’s been helpful God bless you.
I used this recipe before and it was awesome. Am going to make some batch for our Christmas party. The Jamaicans love my chin chin like ehn!!! Thank you so much for sharing!!!
This very good it has been helpful to me I appreciate
Glad to hear that. 😊
Thank you so much Chef Lola for this chin chin recipe. I am going to give it a try this afternoon. Please, may I have your meat pie recipe and procedure. My kids love meat pie and chin chin.
I want to make my own tomorrow, I hope it will come out good. Because I have not do something like that before, but I love when someone is making it
You didn’t specify the quantity of the nutmeg
This recipe is really helpful 😁 thanks to chef Lola. But I have a question how you melt the butter 🤔🤔🤔
You can use the microwave or place the butter in a pot and melt on the stovetop.
Pls can i add water to my dough after adding milk?
Hi Richy, you don’t need to add any extra water.
Please can i use oil in place of butter? What will be the result
The butter helps with texture and taste which might be lacking when oil is used. It wont be quite the same but yes, you could use it as a substitute
I made chin chin using your recipe and it was yummy. My kids who are picky eaters can’t have enough of them. One more recipe to add to the kids thumbs up list. Thank you. 💘 💘
Please I intend on using margarine t9 make mine. What amount should I use?
You can use the same quantity as the butter.
Please, how long can it be stored. I have a chinchin order for next week and am free this week. If i make it this week will it still be fresh, crunchy and sweet next week
It should last for up to a month if properly stored in an airtight container or well sealed plastic bag.
Is 5 to 6 tablespoons of milk enough a soft dough?
Yes, it is.
If milk is excluded from the recipe will it work?
You can use water in place of milk. It will still turn out nice, however, it will be lacking in richness a bit.
Please if I add milk flavour powder to my chin chin, will it turn out fine?
Yes, it will.
Used this recipe today and oh my son said it tasted like the real chin chin 😄. Crunchy and nice. I love it. Thanks chef lola.
Real Chin chin. Yes! … All the validation I need!!
Real Chin chin. Yes! … All the validation I need!! Thanks for the feedback!!!
Can I add milk?
Yes, you can.
Thanks alot I will try this recipe and get back to you
infact dis is amaizn i love ur direction on how to make chinchin,it came out good
I’m so glad you love it!❤️❤️❤️
This recipe is just perfect. The texture and rich flavor is to my family’s liking. I included 1/4 cup of coconut powder and its just superb. Can’t wait to experiment with other flavors. Thank you.
Oh mine, I love the addition of coconut powder! I really appreciate the feedback ❤️
Hello Lola, I want to try this recipe tomorrow but I am wondering what to do if I wanted to get 3x the amount . Does that mean I need to use 3 eggs ?
Also I tried your meatpie recipe and it was amazing. I had been terrified of making it because of a mishap i had while making it. This was while I was in college 8 years ago. The dough wouldn’t form properly. I ended up throwing it all away. It was very painful for me. I am glad to say that it came out perfect. In fact I just may be a meat pie pro thanks to you 😁😁😁!
Hi Chiamaka, yes, you will need to triple the recipe including the eggs, however, if you care less about the rich texture of the chin chin, you can use 2 eggs for 3x the recipe. In that case, you will need an extra 2 to 4 tablespoons of milk. I hope that helps?
Thank you for the feedback about the meatpie. Glad you are now a pro!!! 😁😁😁
It turned out amazing !!!! You are the boss I tell you. 😁😁😁my hubby finished it in 2 days.
So happy it was a hit! Thanks for the feedback Chiamaka ❤️❤️❤️
Hello Lola, I want to try this recipe tomorrow but I am wondering what to do if I wanted to get 3x the amount . Does that mean I need to use 3 eggs ?
Also I tried your meatpie recipe and it was amazing. I had been terrified of making it because of a mishap i had while making it. This was while I was in college 8 years ago. The dough wouldn’t form properly. I ended up throwing it all away. It was very painful for me. I am glad to say that it came out perfect. In fact I just may be a meat pie pro thanks to you 😁😁😁!
you are always on point Mrs Lola…. my chinchin has no choice than to improve……
Yesss! It’s about time to step up the game 🙂
Chef Lola…I love you… thank you for your recipes…have being trying all… from cake,to sausage bread rolls, butter bread, chinchin… I feel like a baker now… my next try is fruit cake❤❤
Go, girl!! ❤❤❤❤
Chef Lola…I love you… thank you for your recipes…have being trying all… from cake,to sausage bread rolls, butter bread, chinchin… I feel like a baker now… my next try is fruit cake❤
I the receipts i think i need to give it a try
My chin chin is always soft like buns Ma please what should I do
Try using this recipe.
Ya ya…i got it!…i just saw dis and wow it came out great…tnx for de recipe
You are welcome. Glad it turned out well for you. 🙂
Thank you for this recipe. I like my chinchin crunchy and a bit hard. So I subbed 1/2 cup of All Purpose Flour with Whole Wheat Flour and it yielded chinchin with the perfect crunch. So very good!
So glad it worked out with the sub – great idea actually! Thanks for the feedback Yinka!!
Nice one, I really enjoy it. Thanks
Thanks alot sis. For the first time, I got my chin chin right. Very crunchy and yummy. I was always adding baking powder thinking it will make it crunchy. I followed your recipe without the baking powder,wallah.
It was fabulous and fantastic
Just made my chin chin now. It’s very nice. Thanks for the recipe
i love this procedure, more Grace
I tried the recipe today and it came out well.I’m so happy rn.Thanks ma’am for this.
sweet and yummy 😋
If u don’t add milk wat will happen to it
Nice recipe ma’am…🤤🤤💓💖💕
Thanks for sharing this recipe. I love very hard and tasty chinchin. So my question is if I leave out the baking powder and add egg to my ingredients, will my chinchin still come out hard?
My Chinchin came out too soft
I AM BAKEING CHIN CHIN.
If I don’t use banking powder will my chin chin be soft
Hi lola I made chin chin but it have this bitter taste and its not crunchy… what could be the problem
If you followed the recipe to a tee, there should be no issues other than the softness. Are you sure that you didn’t use yam flour?
Are u sure u didn’t add more than the required amount of baking powder?
No, you don’t need more than that.
Hi, pls ma how do i watch d video? Its not showing in my system. thanks.
I made this today, mixture and frying took an hour and it came out perfect. I didn’t have nutmeg so I used vanilla extract instead. Also, I didn’t have liquid milk so I used powdered creamer and mixed it with water.
Chef Lola when mixing the flour is it compulsory you mix with yeast
My dear can you tell how to do it
Chef Lola, you are the beat. I have tried almost all your recipe and they came out really nice. My children and hubby love them..even the bread roll was perfect. So grateful for all these recipes. God bless you. I tried the buns and the first set fried too quickly and I had to turn the gas to the lowest..and it came out really nice .excellent. May God bless you.
You are the best
Hi Lola….I just made my chin chin now as my Easter snack..it came out nice..God bless you so much..am so happy
It was fantastic and sweet, I enjoyed every bit of it, yummy yummy 😋 😋
But how can I make with little flour?
this is a nice recipe kudos to you!!!!
Thank you Tobiloba 🙂
Thanks for the tips on how to make it hard or soft…it always comes out softer than I wanted it to.
Glad you found the tips helpful 🙂
First try, went down well. Fantastic taste and subtle crunch. Easy on the teeth and gums as well.
Nice one.. thanks
Send me a recipe of using 2kg of all purpose flour to make a hard chinchin
Thanks so much..it came out nice😍🙏
Awesome receipe
Thanks for sharing
Can I make it without the baking powder and nutmeg?
I would rather you use the baking powder but you can use any other flavorings like cinnamon or vanilla or skip it totally.
Thanks for your comment
thank you so much for this recipe its the best i have tried
Great! I really appreciate the feedback Lara ❤️
Thanks for this recipe. I made chin chin today and it’s so on point, i only added 1 tbsp of water because I used white wheat flour.
What makes chin chin to be more soft.
Is it more of butter of absence of baking powder
Great.
Thank you for the recipe , is it dry or liquid milk that was used in the recipe?
I love this recipe it helped me a lot.Great job
I’m glad you found it helpful. Happy new year!
Must I use baking powder and nutmeg
For this recipe, you need to use baking powder but nutmeg is optional.
There is no nutmeg in the ingredient
How much of sugar, milk, butter, nutmeg, etc do i need 4 about 7kg of flour pls. Thanx!
To fry 5kg of flour, which quantity of butter, eggs and milk are to be use
Wow!!!’ looking so Inviting. I will try your method. Thanks
I’ve never heard of these before. They look really tasty and so easy to eat a lot of them.
These sound so tasty! I would love to try them!
Amazing! I made these for a last minute party snack and they were a big hit! No one had ever heard of ‘chin chin’. Now they do! Love it.
these sound fantastic I love anything fried and with a dough.. Reminds me of an italian fritter too!
This reminds of a snack we had back home in SriLanka. This looks so delicious!
Hello, do you melt the butter and then measure 2 1/2 tablespoons or melt 21/2 tablespoons? Thank you
Hi Cynthia, you can do it, either way, it will yield the same result.
Thank you!
You are welcome, Cynthia.
Thank you so much for this video it was really helpful
You are welcome 🙂
Great recipe. I have tried some other recipes but I am sticking to this one. It came in handy for me this weekend for a shore party and every one loved it. I am making another one today. Thank you.
Yes, yes, yes! I’m happy everyone enjoyed it. Thanks for the feedback!
How do I use yeast to my chin chin
I’ve never used yeast for my chin chin. If I may ask why would you want to use yeast for your chin chin? I don’t think that will be a good idea because it will yield something entirely different from chin chin.
Yes, yes, yes! I’m happy everyone enjoyed it. Thanks for the feedback!
Great recipe. I have tried some other recipes but I am sticking to this one. It came in handy for me this weekend for a shore party and every one loved it. I am making another one today. Thank you.
Hi, can I use powdered sugar in place of granulated sugar?
Yes you can.
Yes you can.
Hi, can I use powdered sugar in place of granulated sugar?
I’d rather you use granulated sugar.