Vegan African Peanut Stew

Hello, my beautiful chickpeas! Today's recipe is perfect to throw into the dinner rotation this fall and winter season. This Vegan African Peanut Stew is comforting, delicious, wholesome, and pretty easy to make. With complimentary peanut and tomato flavors, sweet potatoes, and collard greens, this is perfect for a hearty meal!

This Vegan African Peanut Stew is also perfect when you want a meal with a lot of great veggies and nutrients! I love making a big batch of this on Sunday and reheating the leftovers throughout the week. Let's dive in!

Inspiration for Vegan African Peanut Stew

I actually took a trip to Africa to do some volunteer work during my college years, and that trip was the first time I had African Peanut Stew. Although this dish often has meat in it, the volunteer coordinators for my trip were on top of things and were able to arrange a meat-free version for me a few times. I fell in love with this stew quickly because it was cozy and comforting, but also had a lot of great nutrients packed in.

Through my research since then I have learned that there are multiple versions of peanut stew across Africa. The different versions vary in consistency - some are more of a soup while others are more of a stew. They also vary somewhat in their specific ingredients. However, there are a few ingredients that seem pretty consistent - mainly meat (usually chicken), tomatoes, onion, garlic, greens, root vegetables, and of course peanuts.

This version of course makes a couple of substitutions to keep things vegan, and this won't be the most authentic African Peanut Stew you've ever had. But I promise the same flavors and the same general experience are there!

Ingredients

We have a lot of wholesome and hearty ingredients today! Let's talk about some of them.

• Onion & garlic: the base for any great soup or stew! These add some depth to our dish.
• Ginger, cumin, smoked paprika: some of our major flavor boosters! These make our stew a little bit earthy and smoky, and of course the ginger gives us a very slight kick of spice.
• Veggie broth, tomato paste, & diced tomatoes: for lots of savory vibes! The tomatoes also add a bit of acidity.
• Peanut butter: This makes our stew creamy and adds some sweetness. This may sound like an odd addition, but trust me here - it plays off of the tomatoes and the spices beautifully!
• Sweet potato, carrots, & kidney beans: to bulk up our stew! These make our stew nice and filling, and gives some interesting textures. We are also using the beans for some protein to keep it vegan!
• Collard greens: our greens of choice! These are hearty and go with our other veggies nicely.
• Lime juice, cilantro, and roasted peanuts: these are added at the end for a final pop of flavor and pizzazz!

How to Make Vegan African Peanut Stew

Of course you can find the full recipe down below, but here are the headlines.

1. Sauté your onions, garlic, and ginger.
2. Add seasonings.
3. Add tomato paste, peanut butter, veggie broth, and diced tomatoes. Stir to incorporate everything together.
4. Add sweet potato, carrot, and beans. Bring to a boil.
5. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes.
6. Add collard greens, cook another 7-10 minutes.
7. Add lime juice and more salt or veggie broth if desired.
8. Serve with rice, cilantro, peanuts, and more lime if desired. Enjoy!

Tips & Tricks

I love the way all of our flavors here come together, but you can definitely still play with this a bit if you want! Here are some ideas for you if you feel like experimenting.

• Feel free to switch out the kidney beans for chickpeas if you prefer! I tested this both ways and ultimately liked the kidney beans a bit more, but the chickpeas were also a delicious option.
• You can also swap out the creamy peanut butter for crunchy peanut butter! I personally like the texture of the creamy, but if you want actual chunks of peanuts then the crunchy option would be an easy change.
• You can also swap out the greens! However, collards are heartier than most other greens, so just keep in mind that other greens likely won't have to cook as long and you'll have to keep an eye on them after adding them in. Kale would also be a great option here!
• Looking for other hearty winter meals to enjoy this season? You may also love my Instant Pot Veggie Chili and my Vegan Lasagna With Tofu Ricotta!

Enjoy!