Blog number eleven

What is Chin Chin?

There are many things that I love about Dave but one of the best things he’s done is introduced me to his African culture. A culture that I have never experienced before. One of the special things he holds dear to his heart is is mama and the one thing that his mama does best is cooking.

One of the first African treats that I was able to try through knowing Dave was Chin Chin. Chin Chin are little deep fired dough snacks that are widely known in west Africa. These little oddly shaped pieces of dough were made with such simple ingredients but were so tasty. Since they were so easy to eat, I remeber a bowl of them would dissapear between Dave and I in seconds.

His mom would make batches upon batches of these treats and she would experiment with flavors. The fact that she could turn these sweet treats to savory only made me crave them even more.

I was lucky enough one day to catch Dave’s mom in the kitchen when she was making Chin Chin. It was endearing to see someone at her age still having so much passion in the kitchen. On that day, I was able to assist her in rolling and cutting out the dough. I knew I wasnt much help but it was nice to hear her stories and all the ways that she has made Chin Chin before.

Its crazy how our senses spark memories, most people can talk about there best meals and relate it to a special event or memorable time. Chin Chin is something I tried and now love to eat, however its more than a taste that I enjoy but a warm feeling I have about Dave’s mama and her African cooking.