African Chicken Peanut Stew

I tried this new recipe out today. It got rave reviews, so I figured I'd better share this gem!


 (serves 8)

• 2-3 lbs chicken legs, thighs, and/or wings (leftover chicken works great)
• 1 onion chopped fine
• a 3 inch piece ginger peeled and minced (or crushed ginger)
• 6 garlic cloves minced
• 1/2 cup celery minced, or to taste
• 2-3 lbs sweet potatoes, peeled and in small chunks (normal potatoes work too)
• 2 c. crushed tomatoes
• 4 c. chicken stock
• 1 c. peanut butter
• 1 c. roasted peanuts
• 1 Tbsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp cayenne, or to taste
• salt and pepper (i used cracked pepper) to taste
• (optional) 1/4 cup cilantro
• (Optional) coconut
• *note* I also added leftover peas and lentils which was awesome, so feel free to play around and get creative
• *for vegetarian version I used veg stock and added a bit more celery

1. Heat veg oil in soup pot. Brown chicken and set aside.
2. Saute onions, garlic, celery for 3 min stirring often. Add ginger and saute another 2 minutes, then add sweet potatoes and stir well to combine.
3. Add chicken, chicken broth, crushed tomatoes, peanut butter, peanuts, coriander, and cayenne and stir well to combine. Bring to simmer and add salt and pepper as desired. Simmer gently 90 minutes (check after an hour) or until the chicken meat easily falls off the bone and sweet potatoes are tender. (*NOTE* takes less time if using leftover chicken)
4. remove chicken pieces and set in bowl to cool, until cool enough to touch. Shred meat off bones and put back in pot.
5. adjust seasonings as desired-the stew should be peppery, but up to you. Stir in cilantro if desired and serve by itself, or with rice.