Maafe (West African Peanut Soup)– A spicy peanut stew made with beef, sweet potatoes and carrots – good enough for a one pot meal and is delicious with served with rice
Maafe –aka groundnut soup, to most West Africans, an all time- time favorite African soup, a dish that is beginning to earn it’s way in the upper echelons of the soup universe. Oh yes! Don’t tell me you haven’t tried it, cause you have been missing out! Looks like Curry right? But it’s not!
Care for another groundnut soup?
Unlike the chicken version this here this creation is inspired by the traditional version mostly enjoyed in many Senegalese house holds, It begins with boiling the meat, then browning, followed by a blend of tomatoes, onions and any other spices. What sets this one apart is the addition of sweet potatoes and carrots. Making it a one pot meal or not, and it. If you choose to go that route. I must say I love the added sweetness from the potatoes and carrots . You can completely make this vegan too! if desire, just omit the protein and increase the spices.
This stew is rich with flavor and very tempting with tempting combination of flavors – garlic, ginger, herbs and of course a little bit of spice. As with most stews or soups this is open to so many variations based on your preferences, availability of ingredients and time. You can never go wrong with this soup. If there are any vegans out there, you can completely make this vegan with good results.
When my nephew was a toddler we sure had our challenges trying to get him to eat anything other than carbohydrates, this one sure did the trick, he fell head over heals with this, especially served with rice.
Here I used freshly ground peanuts, always have them handy or just use peanut butter paste.
Maafe West African Peanut Soup
Ingredients
- ¼ cup oil or more
- 1-2 pounds beef or chicken
- 1 teaspoons smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoons white pepper
- 2 fresh tomatoes chopped
- 1 medium onion chopped divided
- 3-4 garlic cloves
- 2-3 tablespoons parsley
- ½ cup ground peanuts or Peanut butter paste
- 3-4 cups broth chicken or beef
- 1 or more pound vegetable potatoes, carrots
- 1 whole scotch bonnet or habanera pepper or ½ teaspoons cayenne pepper optional
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, season meat with salt, and onions and boil until tender, depending on the choice of meat. You should have at least 3-4 cups of stock. Remove the meat and reserve stock (broth)
- In a large pot, heat oil over low heat, then add the beef/chicken and sauté stirring, frequently, any browned bits off the bottom of the pot. Remove and set aside
- Blend tomatoes, and 1/2 onion, garlic, and parsley. Add half of the onions to the pan , sauce for about a minute and pour the mixture in the saucepan; add paprika, white pepper and sauté for about 7-10minutes. Stirring frequently to prevent burns, add stock as needed.
- Then add potatoes, Carrots, peanut butter paste, scotch bonnet pepper and about 3 cups broth. Continue cooking until potatoes tender- about 10 or more depending on vegetables. Throw in the browned beef, Adjust the soup thickness with water if necessary.
- If not, return your soup to the heat and let simmer to desired thickness
- Drip a little soup from your stirring spoon. If you are satisfied with the thickness of your soup, serve it.
Tips & Notes:
- You may skip the beef or chicken browning, if you do not want to deal with any frying or browning and proceed with the rest of the instructions.
- If you are cooking for kids, skip the cayenne pepper and leave the scotch bonnet pepper whole, if not prick to add some heat but not too much.
Nutrition Information:
Justine says
Cooked this for friends and they loved it!! Really great balance of ingredients and just the right amount of spice. Ramp it up if you’re a spice lover. Will be cooking this again very coon.
Amina says
Wohoo, Sounds great that it helps you to make your friends happy. Try some other recipes for a more amazing experience.