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West African Peanut Soup

A quick-to-make soup recipe with warm curry spices, chicken breast and a hint of red pepper.
Bowl of creamy soup with a tomato and peanut base with vegetables and chicken.
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Makes: 8 cups
Nutrition Facts: View label

Ingredients

⅔ cup chopped onion 
1 Tablespoon toasted sesame oil 
1 clove garlic, minced or ¼ teaspoon garlic powder 
1 cup diced and cooked chicken breast 
1 ½ teaspoons curry powder 
½ teaspoon black pepper 
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes 
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth (see Notes) 
1 can (6 ounces) tomato paste 
2 cans (14 ½ ounces) stewed tomatoes 
6 Tablespoons peanut butter

Directions

  1. Wash hands with soap and water.
  2. Rinse or scrub fresh vegetables under running water before preparing.
  3. In a large pot saute onion in sesame oil until translucent; add garlic and chicken and stir to heat through.
  4. Add seasonings and cook 1 minute longer.
  5. Add broth, tomato paste, tomatoes and peanut butter. Stir until well combined.
  6. Heat over medium heat until hot but not boiling. Serve hot.
  7. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours.

Notes

  • Broth can be canned or made using bouillon. For each cup of broth use 1 cup very hot water and 1 teaspoon or 1 cube bouillon.
  • For more peanut flavor, add chopped peanuts.
  • To avoid peanuts or peanut butter, try sunflower seeds or sunflower seed butter.

Comments

This type of soup recipe was nothing like anything I have made before and it ended up being such a tasty combination of flavors. I had it as leftovers and ended up adding some spinach on one day and precooked rice on another day that I needed to use up, and it tasted just as good. It was also super easy to put together, so I definitely will be making this again and again!

This was such a wonderful combination of flavors.  I will definitely make it again.

I made this for a local food bank audience to sample. It was a simple recipe to scale up and most folks really enjoyed the flavors. A few people commented that it was too spicy so I might suggest leaving out some of the red pepper flakes if preparing for a mixed audience. When I make this at home I include frozen green peas and top with a handful of toasted cashews and some golden raisins. It's a favorite!

Very good. Tomatoes and chicken add extra flavor. Next time I am going to add some extra chopped peanuts for even more flavor.

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