This post was made for Qurator's weekly Hive top chef. I didn't get there on time but that's okay. The theme was peanut butter.
I grew up eating quite a bit of that stuff. With a dad working and trying to raise me alone after my mother got sick, peanut butter was a handy thing for him to slap between two slices of bread. I had no problems with that, nor did most kids in the neighbourhood. It wasn't long before I was old enough to make my own.
The only thing I wished was different was the bread. He only bought whole grain bread from the health store. I wanted the soft white bread that my friends had. My best friend across the street wanted my bread so we traded when my dad wasn't looking. I was a slightly sneaky and bratty child. Poor guy I wouldn't want to raise a kid like I was
Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches may have been a staple for a kid in this neck of the woods, but I recently learned that it was not so in other places.
My former Co workers, one Mexican, one Vietnamese both told me they had never had a peanut butter sandwich. They said they had no desire. I was shocked. All these years I thought the whole world did that, at least as a kid.
I no longer use peanut butter for sandwiches.
I use peanut butter in savoury dishes, such as peanut dipping sauce, peanut noodles or Pad Thai and peanut salad dressing.
This time I am making something I've wanted to make for a while, which is West African peanut soup. You could call it stew but I was aiming for soup.
I have added some dry spices that may normally not go in this but I wanted to kick it up a notch. The most common seasoning is salt and pepper, sometimes just cumin, and sometimes coriander. I am not sure what would go into such a dish if I were in the depths of West Africa.
Traditionally this would be made with chicken or meat, but I will omit that and add chickpeas. I made the recipe based on the research then doing it my way. The measurements are what I used but it of course can be changed to suit the individual.
Plantbased West African peanut soup
600g sweet diced sweet potato
350g canned or fresh tomatoes (I blended mine slightly)
120g red bell pepper
200g onion
25g garlic
15g ginger
5g hot pepper
350 chopped collard greens (kale or spinach)
60g tomato paste
200g chickpeas
300g peanut butter
3g coriander stems and roots chopped
30g bragg's liquid aminos (or soy sauce)
100 g water for mixing peanut butter
1 litre vegetable broth
Optional spices
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tbs pepper
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1 tbs chili powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
At first I was going to do a stew with big chunks but I changed my mind. I ended up chopping everything into cubes to make it more soupy.
I have cooked collard greens a few times in my life but recently it has become one of my new favourite greens. It's hardy and lasts for a while in the fridge.
I was not going to put chickpeas originally, but changed my mind at the last minute. Normally I would soak dry chickpeas overnight but this time I grabbed a can from the butcher shop across the street. This is an unlikely place to go if you eat only plantbased, but they have these items as well. Plus it's too cold to run farther. Today is -8C. Warmer than yesterday.
Saute the onions, garlic, ginger, cilantro stems, tomato paste, peppers and spices in a little oil. Add the sweet potatoes and chickpeas. Stir and cover without liquid for five minutes simmering.
Add around one litre of vegetable stock.the liquid aminos (or soy sauce), and the tomatoes. I have homemade stock. You can use water and a stock cube, powder or just water. I like to have as much flavor as possible so I use broth.
If you want a thicker soup or stew, you could slightly cook the sweet potatoes first to use less liquid. You could also bake it in the oven or on a fire if you have that. I didn't want to turn the oven on for one potato.
Next I started adding the collards but stopped, reserving most of the greens.
I wanted the peanut butter to go in before the greens. It would be easier to mix into the soup.
I have been getting really good deals on all natural peanut butter without salt. It sometimes goes for as low as 3 dollars Canadian. To be honest I prefer the junky one. Shhhh don't tell anyone.
This peanut butter like most, is really thick, so I added water and whisked it until smooth.
I added salt to this mixture before I put it in. I don't know why, but I guess it didn't matter. I just wanted to taste the mixture and adjust the saltiness before I added it to the soup.
When the sweet potatoes were cooked through, I added the peanut butter mix and the rest of the collards.
It doesn't take long for collards to cook. Five minutes or so after they are added. the soup is ready to serve.
It was only slightly spicy, unlike the way I usually like, which is really spicy. That was remedied with a little extra chili flakes.
I usually add a little sweetener to balance the flavors, but the sweet potato did that job.
I don't think it would be traditional to squeeze lime on this, I'm not sure, but for me it was an extra boost. I garnished with fresh cilantro and peanuts, and rice on the side.
This is something that could be made almost any where in the world with ingredients that should be easily found anywhere.
I know that even though Canadians are exposed to many cultures' cuisines because of our diversity, the majority would not think of making soup with peanut butter. It really hits the spot for me and I could just keep eating it.
The traditional West African peanut stew will probably use whole peanuts ground up. I skipped that step due to my supply of peanut butter.
Thanks for dropping by and have a great day.
All photos taken with a Nikon D7500 by me except the ones of me taken by my other half.