Last Updated on April 10, 2018 by Chef Mireille
Peanut Soup has its roots in Africa. Wherever the slaves went – the Caribbean, South America, southern United States all have a form of peanut soup that is popular. I’ve already done the Suriname version here. This version comes from one of my favorite cookbooks, The African & Middle Eastern cookbook. I have made several things from this cookbook and it is one of my most utilized.
I did make a few minor changes to the recipe in the book. The original recipe used white yams, but since I am allergic to white yam, I substituted green plantain and the recipe also did not include green beans, but since I had some that needed to be used I added it to the soup also.
Serves 4
Ingredients:
- 3 tablespoons creamy peanut butter (it’s best to use natural peanut butter that does not have added sugar – I use Smucker’s)
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 6 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
- 1 onion, chopped
- 3 teaspoons ginger, finely chopped
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon red chile powder (cayenne pepper)
- salt, to taste
- 1 green plantain, peeled, quartered and chopped into large pieces
- 1 1/2 cups green beans, trimmed and cut in half
- 10 okras, halved
In a large bowl, whisk together the peanut butter, tomato paste and 1 1/2 cups of the stock. Mix until smooth. Transfer to a large pot.
Add the rest of the stock, onion, ginger, bay leaf, thyme, chile powder and salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a low simmer and cook for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
Add plantain, green beans and okra. Cook for 20-25 minutes, until plantain is thoroughly cooked.
Adjust salt if necessary. Serve hot.
…linking Soups & Salads, Taste of the Tropics – Chiles, The Spice Trail, Souper Sunday and Soups & Breads
This post is for the CC Challenge of the month
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Chef Mireille
Think is going to my to cook list. I love peanut based curries and this soup would be a good fit. I have some doubt about the okra – was it not sticky?
no because they are cut in large pieces, by the end they are just cooked through but not mushy. As you can see from the photo they are still firm. The little bit of ooze that is released from the okra helps to thicken the liquid but it is not sticky at all
Looks very tempting, The winter is just right, for these kind of recipes 🙂
Soup with okra is something new,thx a lot for linking it to my event,looking forward to more yummy recipes
Soup looks perfect for these cold days here. With all those ingredients it must be tasty..
new to me dear.Thanks for sharing
Shobas Delight
Such a delicious sounding one Mir…we too make something very similar to such gravies with peanut..so good..
Everytime I visit your site dear.. I find something new 🙂 Soup looks delicious..
I have heard about the African peanut soup but never made it. This looks so wholesome! My daughter is sitting with me now and on seeing the first pic she has asked me to promise her that I make it for her as soon as possible. It has her fav ingredients- peanut butter and okra 🙂 . So I am surely making this Mir….
Sounds very yumm..the color of the gravy reminds me of sambar 🙂
I love the savory flavor of peanut soup and you have so many "goodies" tucked into this one–especially the plantains. 😉 Thanks for sharing it with Souper Sundays this week.
perfect fit for the cold winters…. very new to me so thanks for introducing this to me…
What a delicious soup. Perfect for this chilly weather.
wow thats awesome till now I didnt know we can make soup with plantain and I have never tried any peanut soup too this looks perfect got to try for sure.
Addition of peanuts must be very tasty…delicious