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:
denelian says
i really want to try this — but i am allergic to tomatoes. is there a possible sub for them? i run into this ALL THE TIME, it’s sad, i really want this but.
ImmaculateBites says
Leave it out completely, add about 1/2 cup more onions.
Justin says
Hi there, I noticed you said sweet potatoes in the introduction to the recipe, but then listed potatoes as the ingredient in the actual directions. Can sweet potatoes be used in this? That sounds delicious! Also, I’m sure it’s not authentic, but do you think tofu would work okay as a protein in this recipe instead of meat? Thanks for your recipe, can’t wait to try it!
imma africanbites says
Hi, Justin. Yes, I did use sweet potatoes, but you can certainly swap it for regular potatoes. I just love using the sweet potatoes because it adds that hint of sweetness. As for the tofu, I haven’t tried it tho, so I cannot answer with certainty.
JDR says
This is delicious! Wondering why boil the meat first and then brown? To save time I skipped straight to the sautee stage and it was great. Also, do you mean blend the onion, tomato, parsley, and garlic in a blender or just mix them together before sauteeing? I blended them and it was delicious! Thanks!
ImmaculateBites says
Hi Jocelyn! If you have a tender cut of beef then you can absolutely skip the boiling part. And you did everything just right :). Glad you loved it!
Martine says
salut, avez-vous un livre de recettes avec toutes les recettes de tous les plats africains quelque part à acheter?
ImmaculateBites says
Salut Martine! Je travaille actuellement sur un. Je serai sûr de vous le faire savoir dès qu’il sera disponible, alors restez à l’écoute :). En attendant, n’hésitez pas à parcourir la catégorie des plats africains de mon blog pour découvrir de délicieux plats faciles à préparer. Merci d’être passé.
Fatima says
This was so delicious. One of the best recipes I have tried. Kids loved it. Thanks for sharing.
ImmaculateBites says
Awesome! My son loves this too. Glad it was a hit with your family. Thanks for the feedback, Fatima 🙂 !
Beth Karschnick says
We used to live in West Africa(guinea) and we love this. We didn’t add the vegetables and we used chicken but there are many variations. One year we had all the traditional American fixings for Christmas. Our neighbor also fixed us some traditional dishes from their. My youngest who was probably 4 at the time wouldn’t touch any of my American meal. He would only eat the Guinean food. That’s how much he loved it! Hahaha
ImmaculateBites says
Nice! Thanks for taking the take to share your thoughts with us .
Emma says
I’ve been meaning to try making this for a while. Loved it! Great to make to – not complicated, but a great way to spend some quality time in the kitchen making some tender and delicious food! Thanks for the recipe.
Emma says
I’ve been meaning to try making this for a while. Loved it! Great to make to – not complicated, but a great way to spend some quality time in the kitchen making some tender and delicious! Thanks for the recipe.
imma africanbites says
You’re welcome. So glad you loved it. And thank you for taking the time to let me know.
Jonathan Chan says
could i try this recipe in the crockpot and cook it on slow
ImmaculateBites says
Yes you sure can.