Peanut Stew is a staple of African cuisine and wow is it ever delicious! In this Ghanaian recipe, Chicken and sweet potatoes are simmered in creamy peanut butter broth, flavored with ginger, garlic and a kick of cayenne.
No thickeners are needed in this stew because it gets a rich creamy texture from the peanut butter and the sweet potatoes that partially melt into the sauce. It's naturally dairy free and gluten free, a nice bonus.
Many of us think of stews as winter fare, but the people of Ghana don't need cold weather to be inspired to cook a rich and spicy stew. Despite their tropical climate, stews are among their most common dishes. The Ghanaian name for this peanut stew is Hkatenkwan, which translates as ground-nut stew. The ground nuts, in the form of creamy peanut butter, create a rich and irresistible savory broth.
How to make West African Peanut Chicken Stew
Chicken thighs or legs, on the bone, are browned in oil, then stewed low and slow with the rest of the ingredients: onions, garlic, ginger, sweet potatoes, crushed tomatoes, chicken broth and cayenne pepper. At the end, the tender chicken meat is removed from the bone, shredded and returned to the pot. The bones add great flavor and nutrients to the stew.
- Season bone-in skinless chicken thighs or legs and brown them in oil, in batches, for a few minutes per side.
- Remove the chicken from the pot and add the garlic, ginger and onions. Sauté those for a few minutes (enjoying the incredible aromas) and then add the chicken back to the pot, along with the cubed sweet potatoes, crushed tomatoes, cayenne pepper and 4 cups of chicken broth. In a bowl, whisk 1 cup of creamy peanut butter with the remaining two cups of chicken broth, then pour the mixture into the stew pot and bring the stew up to a boil. Immediately lower the heat to a simmer and cook the stew, uncovered, for an hour, or until the chicken is very tender. remove the chicken pieces from the pot, pull the meat from the bone, shred it and return it to the pot. Done!
To serve, ladle the stew into bowls and garnish with plenty of chopped cilantro and peanuts.
If you like this recipe, you might also enjoy these other chicken stews from across the globe
- Jamaican Curried Chicken Stew with mango
- Korean Chicken Stew with Spinach
- Moroccan Chicken Stew with Sweet Potatoes, Apricots and Kale
Here's the recipe for West African Peanut Stew with Chicken and Sweet Potatoes. If you try this recipe I hope you'll come back to leave a star rating and a comment. I'd love to know what you think!
PrintRecipe
West African Peanut Stew with Chicken and Sweet Potatoes
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 mins
- Yield: 6-7 1x
Description
A sweet, savory, rich, mildly spicy stew from Ghana, with chicken and sweet potatoes simmered in peanut butter broth flavored with ginger, garlic and cayenne pepper.
Ingredients
- 4-5 pounds skinless chicken parts, legs and thighs are best, with bones
- 4 tablespoons cooking oil such as light olive oil or canola, divided
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 2 medium yellow onions, roughly chopped
- 4 large garlic cloves, chopped
- 3 tablespoons minced fresh ginger (from a 2-3-inch piece)
- 6 cups peeled ½-inch-cubed sweet potato (about 3 large)
- 2 cups (16 ounces) canned crushed tomatoes.
- ¾ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 6 cups low-salt chicken broth, divided
- 1 cup creamy natural peanut butter at room temperature
- 1 bunch cilantro, thick stems removed, washed and chopped for garnish
- ½ cup chopped peanuts, optional garnish
Instructions
- Rinse chicken parts, pat dry, season with salt and pepper, to taste. Heat oil (2 tablespoons) in a large stew pot or dutch oven till hot, but not smoking. Brown the chicken over medium-high heat in batches, (4-5 pieces at time) about 3 minutes per side. Once chicken is browned, set it aside.
- Pour 2 additional tablespoons of oil into the pot and add the onions, garlic and ginger. Cook, stirring, until fragrant and somewhat softened, about 3 minutes. Return chicken to pot. Add the cubed sweet potatoes, tomatoes (2 cups), cayenne pepper (¾ teaspoon), and only 4 cups (out of 6) of chicken broth.
- In a bowl, whisk the peanut butter (1 cup) with the other two cups of broth. When fully combined, pour the mixture into the stew pot. Bring the to a boil, reduce heat to a steady low simmer and cook, uncovered , for 1 hour, or until chicken is tender and falling off the bone.
- Remove stew from heat. Using tongs, lift chicken pieces out of stew, remove meat from bones and shred. You won't need the bones for this recipe. Return shredded chicken to stew pot. Season stew with salt and fresh pepper, to taste.
- Ladle stew into shallow bowls. Garnish generously with cilantro and peanuts (optional). Enjoy!
Notes
[This post first appeared on Panning The Globe in October 2012. It was updated in May 2020 with all new photos, clarifying details in the written post and clearer instructions in the recipe.]
Nutrition Information: The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator and is not a substitute for the advice of a professional nutritionist.
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: simmer
- Cuisine: Ghanaian
Hollis Ramsey
I’d add some greens, most likely spinach but maybe mustard greens. If the latter, I’d be tempted to add bacon to the stew and use bacon fat instead of the oil. Your thoughts?
Lisa Goldfinger
I love your ideas Hollis. I agree that mustard greens or even kale would work well here. As for the bacon, almost everything is better with bacon 🙂 The only reason I'd skip it is that the stew is already extremely flavorful without it. If you do make this with any of your changes, I'd love to know how it turns out.
Xina
We have had several versions of West African Peanut Stew and this does not disappoint. Easy to make and full of flavor. Loved every bite.
VK
this stew is one of my favorite meals of all time. you can make it vegan by using chickpeas. you can add bell peppers or spinach, they both work very well, green beans were ok but regular potatoes and carrots were not good imo. I've put a whole habanero in(take it out before serving like a bay leaf), I've used garlic and ginger powder in a pinch but fresh is best. Peanut butter has no true substitute but if you really wanted to try I think tahini would be the closest alternative. the only thing I would recommend is to add less peanut butter at first if you want the rest of the flavors to shine, add the full amount if you LOVE peanut butter.
ps- recent studies have shown that washing chicken can be worse for you because the water splash is more likely to spread harmful bacteria- ymmv!
Natalie
I love making this stew, it’s delicious! They have a similar one at Boma at the Animal Kingdom Lodge at Disney World, which I loved so I was excited to find this recipe.
The first time I made it as the recipe says to, on the stovetop. I didn’t stir it enough and it ended up sticking to my pot and was difficult to clean. The past few times, I have done it in my slow cooker and it turned out great. I browned the chicken in a frying pan, then sautéed the onions, garlic and ginger, just as the recipe says. Then I add chicken stock, the tomatoes and the peanut butter into the pan to get it all mixed and melted together. Then I add that mixture to the slow cooker, along with the rest of the chicken stock, and stir it together before I add in the sweet potato and chicken thighs. I cooked it on low for 8 hours and took the thighs out to shred before we ate it. I usually get it all prepared the night before and then put it in the slow cooker first thing in the morning so that it’s done by the end of the day.
I may try it in my instantpot one day too, but I think I will wait to add the peanut butter until after it has pressure cooked, since it may make the soup too thick for the machine. I’ve had the burn signal come on before when making stew that got too thick. Do you think it would still work if I stirred the peanut butter in at the end for and simmered for a few minutes? Or will that cause the stew not to thicken enough?
Thank you so much for the recipe. It’s one of our favourites.
Keating
This sounds delicious!! I have lots of butternut squash I grew in my backyard garden. Im wondering if it would work if I substituted it for the sweet potato?
Lisa Goldfinger
I'm sure it would be delicious with butternut squash though maybe not quite as sweet and rich-tasting as it would be with sweet potatoes. I would go for it if you have all that squash. And I'd love to know how it turns out.
Lisa
Most awesome recipe - I had tried it in a restaurant and knew I would have to learn to make it myself!
Ellie
My family loves this dish!! I serve it often because they never get tired of this West African Peanut Stew!!
Virginia
I loved it! It’s so delicious. I will definitely make it again and again.
Shawn
Any suggestions how I might change the cooking method for a Instapot?
Lisa Goldfinger
Hi Shawn - I don't use the instapot but here's an article that looks like it would help you make that conversion: https://amindfullmom.com/convert-recipes-pressure-cooking/
Adriana
Can you use frozen sweet potatoes instead of the fresh ones??
Lisa
I've never tried it but I would say yes, I bet it will work well with frozen sweet potatoes.
James Fisher
I add lots of vegetables to this recipe for added goodness. I triple the ginger and double the peanut butter because it is much better that way!
Lisa
I like your additions. Sounds delicious!
Kara
This recipe was so easy and delicious and even my picky 11 year old had some. Will be making this and more African dishes in the future.