African · 60 min · Easy · 4 servings

West African Peanut Stew

Name: West African Peanut Stew
Total time: 60 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 2 tbsp vegetable oil; 1 onion, diced; 4 garlic cloves, minced; 1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated; 1 tsp ground cumin; ½ tsp cayenne pepper; 2 tbsp tomato paste; 2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed; 1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed; 1 can chopped tomatoes; 3 cups vegetable stock; 5 tbsp smooth peanut butter; 3½ oz baby spinach; 1 handful fresh cilantro, chopped; salt, to taste

A silky, gently spiced stew where peanut butter melts into tomato and stock to make something deeply savory. Sweet potato and chickpeas make it a full meal in one pot.

~400 cal per serving — Calories are approximate, per serving — a guide only.

gluten-freesoy-freehigh-protein

Plan it:

Filmed in our kitchen.

Method

1
Build the base
⏱ 7 min
Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat and cook the onion until soft. Add the garlic, ginger, cumin and cayenne and stir for a minute, then stir in the tomato paste and cook until it darkens.
2
Simmer the vegetables
⏱ 20 min
Add the sweet potato, chickpeas, chopped tomatoes and stock. Bring to a simmer and cook, uncovered, until the sweet potato is nearly tender — anywhere from 20 to 35 minutes, depending how large you cut the cubes. Start testing at 20.
3
Stir in the peanut butter
⏱ 5 min
Whisk the peanut butter with a ladleful of the hot broth in a small bowl until smooth, then stir it back into the pot. This stops it clumping. Simmer until the stew is thick and the sweet potato is soft.
4
Finish
⏱ 2 min
Wilt in the spinach, then taste and season with salt — peanut stews need a fair bit. Scatter over the cilantro to serve.

Notes

Loosening the peanut butter with hot broth before it goes in is the trick to a smooth, split-free sauce. Contains peanuts. Lovely over rice or with flatbread.

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Method

Build the base

Simmer the vegetables

Stir in the peanut butter

Finish

Notes