🍢 SNACK
Bajiye (Somali Black-Eyed Pea Fritters)
Soaked, skinned black-eyed peas ground coarsely with onion, tomato, garlic, green chili, coriander and turmeric, fried in small crisp balls and dipped in a sharp green chili sauce.
Somali · medium · serves 6
prep 40 min · cook 20 min · plus 6 h hands-off time
~317 cal · 14g protein · 39g carbs · 13g fat · 7g fiber · 5g sugars · 2g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Bajiye, also written bajiya, are the black-eyed pea fritters sold by street vendors in the markets of Mogadishu, Brava, Merca and Kismayo. They are one of the four snacks of casariyo, the Somali afternoon tea, and they are a regular sight on the iftar table in Ramadan, alongside sambuus.
They are related to the lentil vadas of the Indian subcontinent. The peas are soaked and their skins removed, then ground to a coarse paste rather than a smooth one, which is what makes bajiye crisp. In Brava they were sometimes made with azuki beans instead of black-eyed peas.
Bajiye are eaten hot, dipped in basbaas, a fiery green sauce of chili, garlic, coriander, lemon and vinegar, and in the south often with leeleefow, a sweet and sour sauce of half-ripe mango and .
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally vegetarian, vegan and gluten-, dairy-, nut-, egg- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 6
- 2 cups (about 340 g) dried black-eyed peas
- 1/2 medium tomato
- 1/2 small onion
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1 jalapeño or other green chili, seeded if you like it milder
- 1 tsp coriander seeds, lightly crushed, or ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 2 tsp salt, adjust to taste
- about 4 cups vegetable oil, for deep-frying
- 3 green chilies, for the basbaas sauce
- 1/2 cup fresh coriander (cilantro), for the sauce, loosely packed
- 2 garlic cloves, for the sauce
- 1/2 medium tomato, for the sauce
- 1 lemon, juiced, for the sauce
- 3 tbsp white vinegar, for the sauce
Instructions
- 1Cover the black-eyed peas with plenty of cold water and leave them to soak for at least 6 hours or overnight, until doubled in size.
- 2Drain the peas and pulse them in a food processor 5 or 6 times to crack them. Tip them into a large bowl of water and rub them; the loose skins float to the top. Pour off the water with the skins and repeat 4 or 5 times until most of the skins are gone. Drain well.✎ Chef’s noteThe skins must go: skinned peas fry light and crisp, while skins make the fritters heavy.
- 3Grind the tomato, onion, garlic, chili, coriander and turmeric to a paste in the processor. Add the skinned peas and the salt and pulse to a thick, coarse batter with some texture left, adding no water.
- 4Make the basbaas: blend the sauce chilies, fresh coriander, garlic, tomato, lemon juice and vinegar with a pinch of salt until smooth.
- 5Heat the oil in a deep pan to 175C (350F). Drop in walnut-sized spoonfuls of batter, a few at a time, and fry for 4 to 5 minutes, turning, until deep golden and crisp.✎ Chef’s noteIf the outside browns before the middle cooks, the oil is too hot; let it drop a little.
- 6Drain on paper towels and serve hot with the basbaas for dipping.
Somali street-food and afternoon tea tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Mogadishu. Xawaash is a trade word as much as a Somali one, from the Arabic hawa'ij, and it is thought to have come out of Yemen. The mix runs to cumin, coriander, black pepper, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and turmeric, and in the north of the country the same word covers any blend at all, including the one for tea.
🗺️
Somalia. Pasta is Somali food now. Baasto arrived with Italian colonial rule from the late nineteenth century, took hold hardest in the south that was Italian Somaliland, and was rebuilt around Somali spicing: suugo, the sauce, is tomato cooked down with xawaash and meat, and a banana is served alongside to be chopped in, exactly as it is with rice.
🌍
Africa. Africa's fifty-four nations hold cuisines as different as Morocco's slow-cooked tagines and South Africa's open-fire braai, yet shared threads run through them: ancient grains like millet, sorghum, and teff; stews thickened with groundnut, okra, or palm; and fiery condiments from Tunisian harissa to Ethiopian berbere. Staple starches, fufu, injera, ugali, couscous, anchor communal meals often eaten by hand from a shared dish, where hospitality is a point of honor.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Somalia
Bariis IskukarisFragrant basmati rice cooked with xawaash spice, caramelized onions, and raisins, Somalia’s festive celebration rice.
CanjeeroA thin, spongy fermented pancake (laxoox) eaten with a drizzle of sesame oil, sugar, or stew.
SuqaarSmall cubes of meat sautéed with potato, peppers, and Somali xawaash spice, a quick everyday dish.
Browse all Somalia recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Blender, Food processor.
Storing it: Fried food is best eaten fresh while crisp. Re-crisp leftovers in a hot oven or air fryer; the microwave makes them soft.
Make it a Somalia meal
Shaah SomaliDrink
XalwoDessert
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Cuisine
Diet
Frequently asked questions
What is Bajiye (Somali Black-Eyed Pea Fritters)?
Soaked, skinned black-eyed peas ground coarsely with onion, tomato, garlic, green chili, coriander and turmeric, fried in small crisp balls and dipped in a sharp green chili sauce.
Where does Bajiye (Somali Black-Eyed Pea Fritters) come from?
Bajiye (Somali Black-Eyed Pea Fritters) is a Somali dish from Mogadishu, Somalia.
Can Bajiye (Somali Black-Eyed Pea Fritters) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Bajiye (Somali Black-Eyed Pea Fritters) recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions. Treat the substitutions as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Bajiye (Somali Black-Eyed Pea Fritters) safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we still count coconut as a tree nut to be cautious, although the FDA stopped listing it as one in 2025), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Bajiye (Somali Black-Eyed Pea Fritters) take to make?
About 7 h in all: 40 minutes prep and 20 minutes cooking, plus 6 h of hands-off waiting the method needs, serving 6.
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