Hey foodies, hope you are enjoying the cold winter, I know I’m not. I am secluded in my man cave, playing video games, making food and reminiscing about what it feels like not to be vitamin D deficient. As I was talking to my west African friends, they have told me all about West African Peanut Stew, and it sounded exactly like the type of dinner I should be having in this cold weather. It’s spicy, savoury, sweet, and just bursting with flavour.
Of course, I had to make it the Broke Foodie$ way, cheap, easy and just as good.
What is African Peanut Stew:
This is a very traditional recipe for West African countries (Ivory Coast, Ghana, Nigeria etc.) and to the beautiful nation of Cameroon as well. It is typically made with chicken thighs and broth in addition to homemade peanut butter.
Yes, west African mamas would make their own peanut butter specifically for this dish, which is not necessarily complicated as I have shown before. However, it does show a great level of dedication to making this dish possible.
The taste of it resembles that of an Asian peanut sauce but it has its own character. It is spicier, more savoury and far less sweet.
My Take on it:
In order to make this dish accessible of course, I had to simplify it. Not that the original dish is difficult or anything, but mostly because my readers appreciate straightforward and easy recipes.
So instead of making a peanut paste myself, I have opted for a natural organic peanut butter, and instead of using chicken, I used Tofu. Why? Well it’s very simple, Tofu keeps the cost down (even when using organic), cooks faster and tastes awesome.
Keto Friendly:
To have this dish be both keto and vegan, skip the rice and just eat it as is. It’s awesome, you don’t need rice.
Here is the nutritional breakdown for 1 portion (makes 4):
- Fat : 25.5 g
- protein: 14.25g
- Carbs: 6g (Net carbs)
Plus I feel like this dish is meant to be veganized. It begs to be plant strong, so I obliged.
However, if you are an unapologetic meat eater, you can easily substitute the tofu with diced chicken breast.
How to make African Peanut Stew: The recipe
West African Peanut Stew (Vegan)
Ingredients
- 1 450 g pack of Extra firm Tofu cut into 16 cubes.
- Salt & Pepper to taste
- 3 Tbsp of coconut oil
- 1 onion finely chopped
- 1 thumb size piece of fresh ginger finely chopped.
For the sauce:
- 4 Tbsp of peanut butter crunchy or smooth
- 1 Cup of warm vegetable broth
- 1 Tbsp of Sriracha.
- 1/4 Cup crushed tomatoes
- 1 Tsp of Paprika.
- 1/2 Tsp of Turmeric
- 1/2 Tsp of Cumin
- Optional: 1/2 cup of dry roasted peanuts to garnish.
Instructions
- Warm up your broth by placing it in your microwave for 2 minutes. In a bowl, mix it with your peanut butter, Sriracha, crushed tomato sauce, paprika, turmeric and cumin. Mix thoroughly until you get a homogeneous sauce and set aside.
- Melt 2 Tbsp of coconut oil and fry your Tofu cubes until they form a golden brown crust on each side. This should take about 4 minutes. Remove your tofu from the pan and set aside.
- To the same pan, add the remaining 1 Tbsp of coconut oil, ginger and onions and cook for about 3 minutes.
- Add your sauce to the pan along with your Tofu. Cook for about 2 minutes and remove from heat.
- Serve with some rice, chopped green onions and peanuts.
- Enjoy
Notes
- Fat : 25.5 g
- protein: 14.25g
- Carbs: 6g (Net carbs)
You could also do cauliflower rice
Yes you can!