Mafe (or Maafe) is a popular West African peanut stew made in a spicy, creamy peanut and tomato sauce. This special dish is so mouthwatering and appetizing that you would not be able to get enough of it! This is African food at its best.
❤️ Why You'll Love It
Many variations of peanut butter stew are eaten in different countries on the west coast of Africa, and it goes by different names. In Gambia, peanut stew is made with squash or sweet potatoes and is known as Domoda.
In Nigeria, it is called Groundnut Soup and is usually eaten with fufu or rice. One thing is certain - Maafe is a staple food in African cuisine. It has so many complex and bold flavors that will leave you wanting more. And I make mine in just one pot, so there is less clean-up!
This popular West African stew is gluten-free, keto-friendly, and dairy-free.
🧾 Ingredients
Many variations of African peanut stew are made in different African countries, but it is so easy to make this dish your own.
- Beef: You can use beef, lamb, chicken, or any meat of choice. You can even leave it out entirely for a vegan or vegetarian stew option.
- Peanut butter: A peanut stew won't be complete without this. Store-bought peanut butter is a good choice or you can use roasted ground peanuts as West Africans do it for a more authentic version.
- Vegetables: The most common vegetables for the stew are onions, red pepper, and tomato paste. I use tomato paste rather than tomatoes because it has a sharper taste and gives more richness to the peanut butter stew. You can add as many vegetables as you want, but I like to keep it simple.
- Spices: bouillon, cayenne pepper, black pepper, and salt.
- Water and stock/broth: You can use chicken broth, vegetable stock, or any other stock/broth. If you don't have any on hand, just use water but add more spices.
- Olive oil: to sauté the meat and vegetables.
🔪 How To Make This Recipe
- Wash the beef and cut it into smaller pieces using a sharp knife.
- Heat some olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. You can use a stew pot, dutch oven, or any other pot you like.
- When it gets hot, add the beef, black pepper, and a pinch of salt, and sauté till the meat turns golden brown. This can take anywhere from 8 to 10 minutes. Depending on the size of your pot, you may have to do this in batches.
- The next step is to chop the onions and bell pepper and add them to the meat. Stir and saute onions and peppers for a couple of minutes.
- Add the tomato paste and stir a little bit until it dissolves and is mixed in. Turn the heat down a bit and cook for about 5 minutes.
- Add water, stock, bouillon, cayenne pepper, and salt to taste. If you use stock, remember to add the salt last, so you don't add too much.
- Bring everything to a boil and cook for five more minutes on high heat. Add the peanut butter and stir till it is dissolved.
- Let it cook till it thickens, roughly 2-5 minutes. If you used chicken, lamb, or another choice of meat, you might have to let it cook longer until the meat is cooked through.
🥫 Storing And Reheating
This peanut stew keeps well in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days. You can also freeze it for 2-3 months. To reheat, simply heat in a pot on the stovetop with a little water.
💭 Tips And Variations
- If you use beef for your peanut stew, cut it into smaller pieces before sautéing, to cut down on your cooking time.
- You can adjust the cayenne pepper to your desired preference or also add red chili flakes. To increase the heat, add a whole habanero pepper after adding the stock.
- After adding the peanut butter, you can add a little water if the stew is too thick.
- If you prefer chicken, try this African chicken peanut stew. So delicious!
What To Eat Maafe With?
This delicious African stew is most commonly eaten with rice. For a low-carb option, I serve my Maafe with cauliflower rice.
📚 Related Recipes
Enjoy these delicious low carb African dishes!
Efo Riro (Nigerian Spinach Stew)
Sukuma Wiki (Kenyan Collard Greens)
Fumbwa (Congolese Spinach Stew)
📖 Recipe
Mafe/Maafe (Senegalese Peanut Stew)
Ingredients
- 2 lbs stew beef
- ½ cup peanut butter
- 1 red bell pepper
- 2 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 onion
- 1 tablespoon beef bouillon powder
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt to taste
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup water
- 2 cups stock/broth
- pinch of salt to brown the beef
Instructions
- Wash beef and cut into smaller pieces.2 lbs stew beef
- Pour olive oil into a pan on medium heat.¼ cup olive oil
- Add beef, black pepper, and a pinch of salt, and saute for 8-10 minutes.1 teaspoon black pepper, pinch of salt
- Chop the onions and red bell pepper.1 red bell pepper, 1 onion
- Add onions and red bell pepper and saute for 3 minutes.
- Add tomato paste and stir.2 tablespoon tomato paste
- Cook for about 5 minutes.
- Add water, stock, bouillon, cayenne pepper and salt to taste.1 tablespoon beef bouillon powder, 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1 cup water, 2 cups stock/broth, 1 teaspoon salt
- Bring to a boil and cook for 5 more minutes.
- Add peanut butter and stir till it is dissolved.½ cup peanut butter
- Let it cook till it thickens, roughly 2-5 minutes.
- Serve with cauliflower rice and enjoy!
Notes
- If you use beef for your peanut stew, cut it into smaller pieces before sautéing, to cut down on your cooking time.
- You can adjust the cayenne pepper to your desired preference. To increase the heat, add a whole habanero pepper after adding the stock.
- After adding the peanut butter, you can add a little water if the stew is too thick.
- If you prefer chicken, try this African chicken peanut stew. So delicious!
Made this dish tonight and am eating as we speak lol. It is very good and reminds me of Kare-Kare (sans the tomato paste), a Filipino beef peanut stew that is a culinary staple in the Philippines. Had to boil the meat for 50 mins as I used roast beef but all the work and wait was worth it. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
I'm glad you enjoyed this, Tin. This is one of the favorite recipes in my house too!
Should I use peanut butter with sugar or without? Thanks!
I prefer the one without sugar to cut carbs, but you can use any.
Just made it. Easy to follow and delicious
Thanks for letting me know how much you enjoyed it, Lea!
I was really intimidated to make this, but the direction were super easy. I’m so glad I took the chance to try something new because it was out of this world! My 2.5yr old daughter helped and then devoured it! I made no changes, it’s perfect as is!
Thanks for the recipe. I know I’ll be trying more from you.
Thank you for your kind words, Kristen. I am so glad you and your daughter enjoyed my recipe!
Can this recipe be made in a instant pot? If so what setting would be best?
Hi Carolyn, I haven't tried it yet in an instant pot, but you can try browning the meat using the saute function and then set the pressure to manual mode for about 10 minutes. Let me know how it turns out!
Made it with chicken. I have added some cumin as well as broccoli. Peanutbutter goes well with broccoli. The whole family enjoyed the meal, will definitely make it again. Thanks Yolanda
I'm glad you enjoyed my peanut stew, Yolanda. I'm going to try it with broccoli too!
Hi Tayo can I use chicken, pork or goat meat on this recipe?
Yes, you sure can!
This recipe was delicious! I made it tonight, but also added mushrooms, zucchini, cumin, paprika, and cilantro. It was a very comforting and satisfying meal! 🙂
I'm so glad you enjoyed it, Julia! And I love all the extra ingredients you added. Yum!
I made this tonite and it turned out excellent. I'm off meat so mine was all veggie, onion, red, yellow and orange bell peppers sliced and carrots. I can see adding zucchini and/or squash next time. But very quick and easy and tasty. I will definitely opt to add the habanero next time. But over rice topped with chopped cilantro, yu-mmy!
I'm so thrilled you enjoyed it, Erin. Zucchini and squash will make a wonderful addition!