RECIPE: Maafe / Baman / Domoda – West African Peanut Stew
If there is one thing I remember from my youth living in Africa are the peanuts.
They were eaten in many different ways. I sometimes ate them raw, digging around the plants and pulling out the ‘ground nut’ roots. But my favourite were the sand roasted peanuts. A delicacy we could only get when visiting the market.
When asking people, ‘Why, When & How’ they became vegan, Hannah from New Zealand, told me that one of her favourite dishes was African Peanut Stew, so I decided to include this one. Thanks Hannah for the suggestion and sharing with us your story on becoming vegan. (see my post Choosing What To Eat).
RECIPE
West African Peanut Stew
Often eaten with Fufu, mashed yam. This was a communal dish as many meals were in Africa. Everyone sat around a large bowl. In it was a huge ‘donut’ of mashed manioc and in the hole was the peanut stew. Using two fingers, one takes a bit of firm sticky mash and scoops up some the stew.
I added a bit of Tempeh to this one as I had it, but no necessary.
For this recipe I would serve it with regular mashed potatoes. To make it firmer, mash it a good few minutes.
To feed 4 to 6 hungry souls
INGREDIENTS
1 large onion – finely chopped4 garlic cloves – minced1 thumb’s length of fresh ginger – grated ( skins and all )1 sweet potato – skinned and cubed 3 tomatoes – quartered or 1/2 a can of chopped tomatoes2 tbsp of tomato paste1 large red pepper – cubed2 red hot chillis – finely chopped, seeds and all or 1/2 tsp chilli flakes 4 tbsp of peanut butter – natural, only peanuts 2 handfuls of baby spinach 6 cups of waterJuice of one lemon A little olive oil
If you wish you can add a can of chickpeas, drained. They go perfectly well with this peanut stew. I added a little fried Tempeh into the one in the photo, because I just happen to have some in the fridge!
For the mash6 to 8 large potatoes – washed & cubed ( skins on … so good )2 cloves of garlicA drop of olive oila little sea salt
METHOD
- Sauté the onion, ginger, and garlic in a large pot with a drop of olive oil over medium heat until the onion is softening.
- Add sweet potato cubes, chilli or flakes and red pepper to the pot and continue to cook for about 5 minutes, stiring at times so nothing sticks or burns.
- Add the tomato paste, peanut butter and water to the pot. Stir until the peanut butter has dissolved.
- Bring it all to the boil then turn the heat down and simmer for 15-20 minutes.
- While the stew is stewing … make the mash potatoes ( see below for instructions )
- When stew is ready, all is soft, add the lemon juice and the spinach, mix well, the spinach will melt into the stew.
Serve with a good few spoons of mashed potato. Large bowls might the best for serving this.
MAKING THE MASHED POTATO
Wash and quarter the potato, skins on.Add a few cm of water / 1 inch to a pot, the potato and the garlic whole. Bring to the boil then simmer until potato is soft. This will only take a few minutes depending on the size of your quartered potatoes.Drain and keep the water.Add a drizzle of oil and a good pinch of salt and mash up the potato. If too dry add a little of the leftover water.Continue mashing until you feel it getting a little firm … now you have African mash.