Two years ago, I was lucky enough to go on a backpacking trip across Senegal.
I discovered two things about Senegalese cuisine: A. I love it. B. Maafe is life.
Maafe is a traditional peanut stew. I read it is originally from Mali, but all I know it’s you can find it just about anywhere in Senegal, and when given a chance to eat it, you really really should. At the heart of the dish, two ingredients: tomatoes and peanut paste.
In Senegal, we were most often offered chicken or fish maafe, served with white rice.
I’m a vegetarian, so here’s my veggie only take on the dish, but feel free to add your choice of protein!
What you’ll need:
– Olive oil for pot
– 1 white or yellow onion
– 5 cloves garlic
– 1 red or yellow bell pepper
– 2 sweet potatoes
– 2 cans chickpeas
– 2 cans crushed tomatoes
– 1/2 can tomato paste
– 1 cup peanut butter (ideally natural, organic)
– 2 cups coconut milk
– harissa or chili powder, to taste
How to make it:
- Heat a pot with some olive oil over medium heat. Add chopped up onion, garlic and pepper. Cook until onions are tender.
- Peel and cut up sweet potatoes. Add to pot.
- Add tomatoes, tomato paste, chickpeas, peanut butter, coconut milk. Let it simmer over medium heat, stirring regularly.
- Add harissa or chili powder, to taste.
- Cook for about 35 min. until sweet potatoes are cooked. Add salt to taste.
- Serve over white rice.
Tips:
– You can easily freeze it for up to 1 month. Just give yourself plenty of time to let it thaw!
– Try it with some of our homemade pita bread for a twist!