Creamy Vegan West African Peanut Soup
Living in North Carolina you just have to accept that Summer is going to be like a million degrees hot and as humid as my panties after an intense session of heat yoga. But finally! Summer is over and Fall is in the air! I think Fall is probably my favorite season. I love the leaves changing colors, the cool breeze in the air and it’s usually the perfect weather to wear a cozy sweater, wrap yourself up in a snuggly blanket and enjoy a nice bowl of soup.
Soup in my home is usually an easy comfort food that requires minimal effort. I typically chop up some veggies, throw it in a pot and go take care of one the million other things I have to do everyday. Between working a full time job, walking my dog, making dinner, exercising and trying to maintain my mental health I hardly ever have time for myself. At time I wish to run off into the jungle and be a recluse but other times I crave social interaction. That’s why cuddling up on the couch with a warm bowl of soup is a nice compromise because I can take a minute to decompress and just enjoy my soup. The inspiration for this soup came after I took an Ancestry DNA test. Now I’m not claiming to be African because my results only revealed like 2% Mali but still I wanted to do some research into my ancestors food. Upon my research I stumbled upon a lot of good dishes but the one that spoke to me the most was the peanut soup.
Peanuts are a great source of protein and fiber and when introduced into dishes as peanut butter they help provide a creamy smooth finish to food without the need of dairy. This peanut soup was the perfect thing to help me find a happy place, it’s savory with a hint of sweetness, it’s spicy and warm and very comforting. I added sweet potatoes and spinach to help balance the flavor and add make it a bit more filling.
This peanut soup is so easy to make! To start you want to prepare your ingredients. This recipe uses the African trinity, onions, chili peppers and tomatoes. The trinity of cooking is a really cool concept. If you look at different countries the recipes will often have common ingredients as a base. Take for example in American cuisine the trinity usually consists of carrots, onions and celery. In Mexico it’s tomatoes, onions and jalapeños. So what you want to do is chop up all of your ingredients like the onion, ginger, garlic and sweet potatoes.
One cool trick I learned which if you haven’t been using it already is to peel your ginger using a spoon. The spoon just peels off the skin conserving most of your ginger so you can enjoy it in your food instead of tossing it all out! So in a pot you add a bit of coconut oil and sauté your onions and ginger. Another thing I like to do is add my spices while the vegetables are sautéing, this helps them release their aromas and oils and makes the flavor that much more potent while you’re cooking. While your veggies are cooking prep your other ingredients like the coconut milk, broth and tomatoes. Of course you’re welcome to use fresh tomatoes but personally I prefer to use canned as I think they have a bit more flavor and it’s also less work for me to do.
So let me tell y’all about another cool trick I found. Upon my listening to the Foodstuff Podcast I learned a lot about cans. Apparently cans used to be made out of a thick steel, aluminum or sometimes even lead (YIKES!) and people would have to use hammers and chisels to open them! Can you imagine? Well luckily we don’t have to do that anymore but I did learn that we have been using can openers wrong our whole life. You know how when you open up a can the lid gets stuck inside or you sometimes have to pry it open and hope you don’t cut yourself. Well apparently! if you place the can opener the other way it cuts the top off and there is no need to pry anything open or hope you don’t get cut. Take a look at the picture below to see what I mean. I’ve been doing this ever since I found out and it has changed my life!
After your veggies are sautéed add the rest of your wet ingredients like the tomatoes, juice and all, coconut milk and broth. To add a bit more spice at this point I also add a little bit of red curry. You’ll let it all cook for a little bit then add your peanut butter and lastly the spinach. By adding the spinach last you make sure that it doesn’t get too mushy and broken in your soup.
Creamy Vegan West African Peanut Soup
Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
1 (5oz) pkg Baby Spinach
24fl oz vegetable broth
1 small bunch cilantro
1 can coconut milk
4 cloves garlic, minced
2in piece ginger, minced
1/2 cup peanuts
1lb sweet potatoes
1 (28oz) can tomatoes
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 tbsp red curry paste
1/2 cup peanut butter
salt
1 tbsp coconut oil
In a pot over medium heat add your coconut oil. Sauté the onion for 1-2 minutes until translucent. Add the garlic, onion and curry paste and cook for another minute. Wash, peel and medium dice the sweet potatoes. Add to pot and stir to coat in curry.
Add the tomatoes, coconut milk and broth. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer for 10-12 minutes. Cook until potatoes are tender.
Wash and dry spinach, set aside.
Place your peanut butter in a small bowl and add a ladle full of hot broth. Mix until smooth and add back to your pot. Stir until peanut butter is completely incorporated into soup.
Add spinach, stir and cook for 5 minutes.
Serve and garnish with cilantro and chopped peanuts.
