Peanut stew, which is actually called “groundnut stew,” is a staple meal in Western Africa. The thick stew has incredible depth of flavor because it’s loaded with an assortment of spices. Typically, the stew has a mixture of vegetables and meat, but this recipe is vegan-friendly, using sweet potatoes as the “meaty” component.
The great thing about this stew is that it is very difficult to mess up. All you have to do is add everything to large pot and cook it for a little while. If you have nut allergies, you can swap the peanut butter and peanuts for sunflower seed butter and sunflower seeds. Leftovers will keep for five or six days in an airtight container in the fridge, but we doubt that you’ll have too many leftovers. It’s just that delicious!
- Prep Time:10m
- Cook Time:20m
- Total Time:30m
- Serves: 6 servings
- Category: Soups & Stews, Entrees, Vegan, Vegetarian, Gluten-Free
Ingredients
For the Stew
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 large onion, diced
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 1/2 tbsp. ginger root, grated
- 1 – 2 serranos, diced
- 1 tbsp. ground coriander
- 2 lbs. sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
- 1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes
- 4 c low-sodium vegetable stock
- sea salt & pepper, to taste
- 3/4 c natural peanut butter
- 5 oz fresh spinach, chopped
- juice from 2 small lemons
For Serving
- fresh cilantro, chopped
- peanuts, crushed or whole
- red pepper flakes
- cooked rice or quinoa (optional)
Instructions
For the Stew
- Warm the olive oil in a large stockpot over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, and chili peppers and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Add the ground coriander, sweet potatoes, diced tomatoes, vegetable stock, and sea salt and pepper and mix well. Allow the mixture to come to a boil and then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Test the potatoes to make sure they are fork tender before turning the heat off. When you remove the pot from the heat heat, stir in the peanut butter, spinach, and lemon juice.
For Serving
- Ladle the stew into bowls and garnish with cilantro and peanuts. You can serve over or next to rice or quinoa if you want to.
- If you feel like it needs more heat, bust out your favorite hot sauce. Enjoy!
