Fusion Peanut Butter Stew
I spontaneously start singing my mums mantra/chant that accompanied all our childhood meal times when this yummy, hearty and moorish stew was served!!! “Groundnut soup is good for little chiiiiiilldren!!!” mum always attuned and made us sing as she fed us this meal. We enjoyed it with different carbohydrate sides including rice, plantains, fufu etc . I always had a 2nd serving. Peanut stew or groundnut stew is called different names including maafe , sauce d'arachide (Francophone Africa), tigadèguèna or domoda, is a stew that is a staple food in Western Africa. It is made with chicken, Scotch bonnet peppers, tomatoes and either groundnut or peanut butter and perfect combination of the sweet, savoury and spicy. The consistency can be varied to taste and it is cooked with different proteins including lamb, beef, chicken, or fried fish. I often add spinach or greens to make it more nutritious. Substituting the carbohydrate to low carb substitutes eg cauliflower rice or fufu elevates this stew to one of the favourites on the afrofusion plan.
Ingredients
- 12 chickendrumsticks
- 2 tbsp Ginger and garlic paste
- 2 tsp Dried thyme
- Salt to taste
- 2 tbsp peanut oil divided
- 1 Onion peeled and finely diced
- 2 Red pepper bell deseeded and finely diced
- 400 grams Chopped tomatoes
- 5 tbsp smooth peanut butter
- Scotch bonnet or oher chilli to your taste (optional)
- 2 tbsp Tomato puree
- 2 Stock cubes in 500ml of water Or as an alternative 500 ml chicken stock
- 1 Spring onion
Instructions
- Season chicken with 1 tsp ginger and garlic paste, thyme, pepper and salt.
- Add 1 tbsp of peanut oil to a frying pan over medium heat and brown the chicken on all sides in batches.
- Add the remaining oil to the frying pan and add the onion and peppers and cook for 5 mins until the onions are softened.
- Add 1 tbsp chopped tomatoes, 2 tbsp water, the peanut butter, the garlic, ginger and chopped scotch bonnet to the blender and blend into a paste.
- Stir the blended peanut butter sauce, the remaining ingredients and chicken back into the onion mix, bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer' for about 60 mins.
- Leave cover open during cooking to reduce the peanut sauce significantly
- Stir the mix occasionally during the 60 minutes to prevent the peanut butter from settling to the bottom of the pot.
- You want a peanut soup that is darker, tastes sweeter and 'caramelised' at the end'. (You will see a few small bits of oil floating at the top when done.) At the end of 60 mins, taste stew and adjust seasoning, then turn off.
- Serve with cauliflower rice, bulgar, cauliflower fufu, plantains or bread and garnish with herbs and spring onions.
Notes
Chef’s Hints
The soap foams up during boiling, so you need to reduce it to a 'rolling or roiling' simmer as soon as it starts to boil
For a slightly thicker more caramelised sauce which I love, I simmer for another 15-20 mins.
The soap foams up during boiling, so you need to reduce it to a 'rolling or roiling' simmer as soon as it starts to boil
For a slightly thicker more caramelised sauce which I love, I simmer for another 15-20 mins.
Nutrition
Serving: 8PeopleCalories: 330kcalCarbohydrates: 8.34gProtein: 25.8gFat: 21.77gSodium: 820mgFiber: 1.5g
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!