Peanut Stew (Obe-Epa) Vegan Style

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Much like serving Okra and Molokhia (ewedu) with rice, I find peanut stew and rice a bit odd. First time I made peanut stew, I wasn't raving about it as I thought I would. I just didn't like it on rice. Later that week, trying to eat my fridge down, I slapped the leftover on some chips and I loved it! However, I wasn't about to be making peanut stew just to eat chips, so I never cooked it again, until recently.

Coming across some old recipes from my uni days got me thinking about peanut stew again. This time though, I wanted it as a main meal. With this thinking, it was much easier to arrive at a vegan option because this satisfies my love of soup styled food. After all, we were coming up to the season where I don't need to explain eating soup/stew for lunch. Plus, why be a side when you can be a main meal?

To make this a main meal, it'll have to contain things that makes it a main meal. The likely candidates were courgettes, aubergine and carrot. Also, original peanut stew comes with meat but this is a no brainer, Tofu is the answer here. Not only am I obsessed with Tofu, it's the meat replacement that brings the ultimate finish to this stew. To be honest though, it's optional. You can substitute with aubergine.

Problem was all the usual bulky veg seem samesy to me. I was doing a recipe swap for my favorite fish soup, for which I have bought some yam and thought it'll go well with this. Ever since I made that plantain fritata, I've been trying to find sweet and savoury recipes like that. With yam, I found my savoury but unless I added some brown sugar, I wasn't going to find my sweet. There enters sweet potatoes! And this is such a treat for me because I also recently bought some African sweet potatoes.

I don't think Africans deliberately buy the sweet potatoes from supermarkets unless they are desperate, as it's nothing like the one from back home. I've heard funny stories from people trying to boil the supermarket ones and ending up with soggy potatoes because they were cooking it like the ones from back home, which can take a lot of water. I believe the ones from supermarket will be perfectly fine for this recipe, especially if you are cutting down on sugar. They are also much cheaper than the African one, which comes in at at least £3 per kg. Last I checked, loose potatoes are £1.10 per kg at Tesco, with the Redmere range coming in at 97p (no ad, just shop at tesco).

You won't find Yam in supermarket unless you live in an area like Old Kent Road. I used to worry the ASDA and Tesco on that road were going to close down Afro shops, with the amount of Afro foods they sell. If you've never eaten yam, it can be described as African potatoes but a bit rougher in texture. Like sweet potatoes, Yam is also more expensive than potatoes, so it's perfectly ok to sub with potatoes. When subbing yam and African sweet potatoes with UK variant, you'll need to make sure you don't over-cook as timing will differ. Also, don't over-spice.

I think if you follow me on Instagram, you'll know I love spicy food. Please I take God beg you, adjust to taste :) No come kill yaself on top groundnut stew o. Due to peanut being delicate, just one scotch bonnet will make a difference.

Speaking of peanuts, I'm not a fan of the cheap supermarket ones because they are usually a bottomless pit of salt. Ever since I accidentally bought a bag of raw monkey nuts and had to roast it myself, I've been eating peanuts again! I shell them when I'm watching TV and just pop into the oven (unsalted) for about 10-15mins at 160. Alternatively, buy the cheap ones, rinse the excess salt off and dry with paper towel. If you happen to be cooking in the oven, pop in on the lower rack for about 5 mins.

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Tips

1. I used food processor to grind my peanut but a coffee/spice grinder also works

2. The yam and sweet potatoes don’t need to cook through when you fry them. It’s better to complete the process in the stew to ensure a deeper flavour. Frying first ensure they don’t become soggy during cooking

3. When frying scotch bonnet, it’s ready for other ingredients once you can smell the spice...cue when you sneeze haha 🤪

4. If you are like me and like your veg with a bite, save half the red pepper and add at the same time as spinach. Instead of cooking further, turn down the heat and let the steam do the rest

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Ingredients

✅200g Tofu

✅2-4 table spoon smooth peanut butter (optional)

✅ Seasoning - smoked paprika, ginger, curry, turmeric powder, salt, vegan stock cube and coriander powder

✅1 tbs tomato purée

✅1 1/4cup unsalted, roasted peanut

✅200g sweet potatoes

✅200g yam (or potatoes)

✅1 onions & 1 shallot (chopped)

✅1 -2 cloves of garlic (feel free to follow your ancestral guidance 🤪, I do)

✅2-3 scotch bonnet, chopped (or use ancestral/taste bud guidance)

✅1/2 tinned tomatoes (200g) (optional)

✅1 medium red salad pepper, diced

✅200g Kale(de-stemmed and washed)

✅200g Spinach

✅Coconut or sunflower oil

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1. Cut the tofu into bite size

2. Melt peanut butter with 1-2 tbs of water or 1 tbs coconut oil

3. Coat tofu in peanut butter and refrigerate

4. Cut the yam and sweet potatoes into bite size. Fry on medium high heat until edges are crispy and set aside

5. Grind peanut into powder form, taking care not too grind into peanut butter. However, this isn’t the end of the world

6. In a Bowl, add peanut powder, all herbs and seasoning, the tomato purée and enough water to make a thick paste

7. Fry garlic, scotch bonnet, onion, shallot and garlic lightly for around 2 mins

8. Add Tofu and red pepper. Cook for another 2-4mins

9. Add the peanut paste, some water (about 100ml), yam and sweet potatoes

10. Simmer for 10-15 mins checking to see if more water is needed. The amount of water you add depends on how thick you want the stew to be. If unsure, add gradually

11. Once the yam and sweet potatoes are cooked through, add spinach and kale. You may add some water if you think you need it

12. Cook for another 3-5mins

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