Kenyan style Chevdo or Kenya Chevdo / Chevro is sweet, spicy and incredibly tasty. It’s a delicious blend of deep-fried potato crisps, beaten rice, fried beans, lentils, nuts and some basic spices. This East-African savoury snack is crunchy and full of flavour.
You can make this recipe easily and in less time by buying ready-made potato sticks (katri). Or, make the recipe from scratch by making the katri yourself at home! The recipe is naturally vegan and gluten-free!
Be prepared to make a large batch as this recipe will lead to third helpings!
What is Chevdo/Kenyan Chevdo?
Chevdo/chewro/chivda/ is an umbrella term for deep-fried savoury mix consisting of crunchy dried ingredients such as puffed rice, potato and lentils along with nuts and spices. It is enjoyed as an afternoon snack along with a piping hot cup of masala chai.
Chevdo can also be used as a topping for curries such as chana bateta, typically enjoyed by East-African Gujaratis.
Chevdo can be prepared at any time of the year but is most commonly eaten during Diwali. It is perfect to serve to the many guests that visit during festivities.
Kenya Chevdo or Kenyan Style Chevro is the East African Gujarati style version of chevdo. The flavours are sweet, sour and mildly spicy!
The bulk of Kenyan Chevdo is made with crunchy potato crisps or katri giving it a unique taste and texture compared to other chevda recipes.
It is extremely popular amongst British Asians, especially with those who grew up in East Africa and migrated in late 60’s or early 70’s to the UK.
It is widely available in Indian sweet shops, but many older generations of British Asians make this at home. Some families supply this unique Kenyan Chevdo to their customers as it is made in a unique way.
My Mum learned to make Kenya Chevdo from my Grandma and in just a couple of hours, she had prepared a big batch of it! Since then, it is guaranteed to be a part of our Diwali snacks every year!
More Chevdo Recipes:
- Mixed Cereal Chevdo – this recipe avoids deep-frying and is literally made from breakfast cereals!
- Matoke (Raw Banana) Chevdo
- Diet chiva – consists of puffed rice (mamra) and peanuts which are lightly roasted in basic spices
- Farali Chevdo – eaten during Hindu fasting season, farali chevdo is made with potato sticks and peanuts and spiced with black pepper and green chillies. Poha is not added to this recipe.
Ingredients
For kenyan chevdo, you will need:
- Potatoes/ready-made Katri – you can easily purchase readymade crinkle cut chips and potato chips (katri) from supermarkets or Indian grocery stores. You can also make katri at home, the recipe is included below.
- Mag ni dal/Yellow Moong Beans – you will need mag ni dal which has been soaked overnight then thoroughly dried. You can also use green moong dal
- Chana Daal – chana dal (split chickpeas) should also be soaked overnight and dried.
- Thick flattened rice – also known as jada poha or thick poha which are available in Indian grocery stores are quintessential to chevdo
- Mixed nuts – you will need cashew nuts, almonds and peanuts. Use all for the best flavour but for allergy reasons, you can use whichever nuts suits you.
- Oil – you need oil to deep fry. Use sunflower, vegetable or olive oil
- Salt – to taste
- Caster sugar – use caster sugar rather than granulated so it dissolves faster. I tend to grind down granulated sugar in a food processor rather than buying caster sugar
- Red chilli powder – I used a mix of kashmiri and ordinary chilli powder so I get good red colour and not too much spice
- Turmeric Powder
- Amchoor Powder – use amchoor powder (dried mango powder) for the sour, lemony flavour. You can also use citric acid but use less compared to amchoor powder!
- Cinnamon bark
- Cloves
- Slit green chillies – either slit or cut green chillies. Check the heat level of the chillies to assess how many you will need.
- Curry leaves – do not skip the curry leaves as they lend incredible flavour
How to make Kenyan Chevdo
Follow the step-by-step instructions:
Soak mag ni daal and chana daal overnight or at minimum for 4 hours. Once soaked, dry thoroughly using a kitchen towel.
Mix together red chilli powder, turmeric powder, amchoor powder and salt and leave aside
Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan on medium heat
In metal sieve, place the cinnamon bark and cloves. Lower the sieve into the hot oil and fry the spices for a few seconds. Life away the sieve from the oil and remove the spices into a large bowl.
Next, fry the chillies in the same way, remove and then the curry leaves.
Repeat these steps for each of the nuts. Work quick as the nuts will not need long and you do not want them to burn on the outside, simple turn golden.
Next, fry the dal. You may need to do this in batches depending on the size of your sieve. Do not fill the sieve to the top as the oil will splutter and the ingredients expand as they fry
Next, fry the poha. Swirl the sieve gently as you go to ensure each grain is able to fry and expand. Poha only take a couple of seconds.
Fry the potato if you are making these from scratch
Lastly, if you wish, fry the sultanas for a couple of seconds.
Mix together all of the ingredients in a large bowl. Use a large bowl as possible as you need plenty of space to mix everything.
Add the masala a bit at a time and taste test as you go. Check for sweetness, tartness, spice and salt levels.
Allow the chevdo to cool and taste test again.
Tips
Use caster sugar – use caster sugar rather than granulated as it dissolves faster and sweetens evenly. Shop bought packets tend to have sugar pooled at the bottom!
Use a metal sieve – for chevdo, it is common to add the ingredients to a sieve and lower the sieve into the hot oil. It makes it easier to remove small ingredients like the mag ni daal quickly from the hot oil (you might want to use gloves for this one!)
Fry the most fragrant ingredients first – this is so the oil becomes infused with all the fantastic flavours and reaches every morsel of the chevdo! I start with the cinnamon and cloves, then the chillies and the curry leaves.
Combine everything and especially the masala whilst the fried ingredients are still warm – this helps the masala to set and stick.
Taste the chevdo every hour and adjust the masala/seasoning – it takes a while for the flavours to set so the initial taste test might not taste the same as the end product!
How to make Katri at home
Making katri at home is easy, just requires a little bit of work!
You will need potatoes and oil to deep fry.
Firstly, peel the potatoes, grate and wash in running water to discard the starch. You can use a food processor to speed up the grating process
Dry the potato sticks thoroughly with a clean kitchen towel
Heat oil in a kadai/pan over medium heat. Add the potato sticks to the hot oil and fry until they are crispy.
If you are making these at the same time as the kenyan chevdo, you can fry the potato straight after the cinnamon and cloves. The flavour of the whole spices will infuse the oil and therefore the katri.
Storage
Chevdo is often made days in advance and so needs to be stored correctly. The ingredients in chevdo can go stale fast so keep it in an airtight container for up to 4 weeks.
Ensure the chevdo is well cooled before storing or else some moisture may remain and spoil it.
I have also read that many people freeze their chevdo in freezer bags and simply remove the amount they want to eat and thaw for a few hours. This keeps the chevdo crunchy for even longer. I have not tried this technique myself.
FAQS
Chevdo will remain crunchy for up to 4 weeks. After this, it may start to go stale
Yes, you can although the flavours will not be balanced. Some sweetness is provided through the sultanas. As an alternative, you can use natural sweetener such as stevia, but this often has a cooling aftertaste.
This particular recipe requires deep-frying for the best results, but you could also air fry some of the ingredients such as the daal and the poha.
Cereal chevdo is made without deep-frying (link in post above)
To make this chevdo nut-free, simply omit the nuts or only add the nuts which you are aware are safe for your guests to consume.
Other East-African recipes:
I absolutely love East-African Indian food! You’ve got to try out some of these dishes too:
Kasoli and Jugu nu Saak (Sweet Corn and Peanut Curry)
Mogo ni Bhaji (Cassava stir-fry)
Kenya Style Chevdo/Chevro
Ingredients
- 100 grams potato crisps katri
- 50 grams moong dal yellow
- 50 grams chana dal split chickpeas
- 100 grams flattened rice thick-Jada Poha / pava
- 200 grams nuts peanuts, Almonds and cashew
- 5 tablespoon raisins or sultana
- 500 ml oil to deep fry
- 6 tablespoon sugar powdered
- salt per taste
- 3 teaspoon chilli powder Red chilli Powder + Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder
- 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 2 cinnamon bark taj
- 8-10 cloves laving
- 3 green chillies cut
- 25-30 curry leaves fresh
- 1 teaspoon amchoor powder dry mango powder
Instructions
- Wash and soak moong dal and chana daal separately in cold water. Leave overnight or at least 4 hours
- Drain the water and dry thoroughly
- In a small bowl mix salt, red chilli powder, turmeric and amchoor powder
- Heat the oil over medium heat and fry cinnamon and cloves, then fry green chillies and curry leaves and put it separately aside on a plate.
- Now fry the nuts, keep everything in a big bowl or a plate.
- Then fry chana dal and moong dal until nice and crispy. (it can take up to 2-3 minutes for each batch)
- Quickly fry flattened rice in small batches.
- Turn off the heat then quickly fry raisins.
- In a big bowl, or plate add poha and both fried lentils (dal), add mixed spice powders and mix.
- Then add nuts, chillies, whole spices and curry leaves. Add mixed spice powders and mix well.
- Then add powdered sugar, combine everything.
- Now add potato crisps/wafers or katri and gently mix until everything evenly coated in spices and sugar.
- After about an hour mix the chevdo again and let it cool completely.
- Once cooled completely store in an airtight container.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
PLEASE NOTE: Nutritional values are estimated by a computer and may vary based on ingredients and portion sizes. For personalised dietary advice, please consult a qualified healthcare professional.
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This chevdo is just the way my mum used to make and believe it or not she used to make like 5 kg of it. We used to love it , I am coming over for some. 😀
hi jagruti…this chivda looks lovely! lovely pics as usual too…………finally managed to set up my page too.thanks for ur help!
Thanks Farah! I am glad, I was able to help you.
Chivda looks lovely…I had the opportunity to try kenya chivda when I visited my In-laws place…Thanks for sharing the recipe..
Glad you enjoyed this chevda.
The chevdo looks so tempting right now what I want is a bowlful of this chevdo a glass of masala chai and a cosy corner to read a book and I am done, missing these homemade chevdo after I left Gujarat, will try your lovely recipe soon.
Thanks Soma! Sounds a good idea 🙂 let me know how you like it.
That sound awesome.. Potato fries in this chevdo steals my eyes.. You have just nailed it perfectly..
You are so right, when I had this chevdo first time my thoughts were the same:)
It is so heartening to get lost piece of paper – it has so many memories attached to it. Now that you have the recipe on JCO, you wont lose it. These chevdo are calling out to me.Perfectly done and what a pair they will make with adrak wali chai!
Thanks Jyoti, exactly that is why I prepared this dish and posted it straight away here 🙂
So glad you were finally able to find your MIL’s recipe. I know the feeling of losing a recipe that is handed down. Thank fully now you have it documented for all of us to peruse too. So a big thanks to you for that.
You're welcome pavani! Yep I am very happy that now this authentic recipe is here and forever with me 🙂
This look so delicious and coming with a heritage link it must be awesome.
Thanks jayashree! Couldn't agree more 🙂
😀 cannot help smiling. The scene is so much like home. I write on chits n loose them. Many times there are no heading just ingredients. In the past I just had to look n remember what recipe it was. Now well the connections are not so strong. Kids tease me that age is catching up
I love to try this chivda only time involved is tooooooo much. Maybe when I am on leave.
Lol..and I still continue doing that too, old haboits die hard 😀 Definitely it's time consuming recipe but it is worth it 🙂
Classy post for chevdo, Can finish the Bowl of shaved with sambar rice.. Your pictures are too perfect and you nailed it..
Thanks Sujitha! My husband loves it with yogurt, no idea why 😀
Amazing recipe Jagruti! Once again beautiful photos and such a unique recipe. I am definitely trying it
Thanks Nandita! Hope it turns out great for you too 🙂
looks crunchy and full of flavored fried snack. Perfect for evening tea time.
Thanks Uma! or while watching TV just munch on this 🙂
Adore the way you have described relationships, and super cool recipe
Thanks Seema!
Really sweet of your MIL and glad you finally able to found the treasure 🙂 Chevdo looks stunning and I am sure that this is dangerously addictive !
Thanks Priya! It is super tasty chevdo 🙂
Great tea time snack! Looks chatpatta :)) Nice clicks.
Thanks Geeta!
Omg, such a fabulous chevdo, seriously its really a treasure to find these sort of dishes now, thats really sweet of your MIL and now we got a fabulous snacks to make anytime. Thanking you for sharing this delicious crispy beauties.
Thanks Priya! I am so lucky to have her recipe and yes we had great times together and now I have all those memories to cherish 🙂
What an awesome snack to have with tea. Love the drool worthy pics👍
Thanks Avin!
So glad to know that after all you found the original hand written recipe and no wonders it was stuck there, it happens with me sometimes some valuable papers I find stuck behind things I won't even imagine. Love the recipe and pictures.
Thanks Sapana! Lol, I can imagine 🙂 because this happens with me all the time but never learn:)
Love the use of potato fries, its amazing!!!
Thanks!
Love this chivda, perfect partner for Tea or evening Munch .. loved recipe.
Thanks Ruchi!
Loved reading about your story about relationship and u and MIL. Very sweet. well after reading the recipe your Notes helped me a lot to relax that I can make this with some ready made ingredients. I like all your chivdo recipes.
Thanks Bhawana! Hope it turns out great for you!
Lovely post Jagrithu!This chevdo sounds so addictive. I too learnt quite a few dishes from MIL and she was so happy to share the recipes. My style of cooking is totally different from her ways yet I wanted to try them out and even earned her appreciation! And those handwritten recipe notes are forever wandering around the house and my maid now understands how important they are to me, so keeps them all safely on my table.And so nice that you found your treasure after so many years!
When there are DIL's like yourself, who worries about having tiffs and arguments with MIL's? A relationship takes 2 people to grow and nurture. Each one is expected to do their bit and adjust too. That is the simple logic of life and every relationship that we come across during the course of our existence. The fact that she accepted you as a daughter and understood you speaks volumes of her good nature and secondly, you also accepted her and learnt from her. It is not easy to do that. Written recipes are such a treasure and I am so glad that you have that piece of memory with you now to pass it down to the next generation of great cooks. Chevda is looking super duper and I am so in love with the beautiful write up. Cheers!
The chevro looks super relish. A cup of tea and that in a bowl and I am sorted. U have a knack of such combos and if only I could dare make them at home😛
Awesome Post Jagruti! I got emotional while reading your story. Hats off to you for keeping that piece of paper safely for so long. You are a great Daughter in law. I ma sure your MIL Would be so happy to find you.Your pictures are too perfect and every time I visit your website I get mesmerized.
This was such an interesting post to read, you are so lucky to have gotten along with your MIL. I just can't quite connect with mine, she's nice enough but even my husband says she lives on her own planet!
Really love this recipe, my kids enjoy spicy snacks like this, must make it for them. And how lucky that you had to replace your meters!
this chevdo was so yummy, thank you so much for the recipe.
Very well written recipe, Hayley. Loved the detail and thought process on the order of ingredients’ prep and tips.