Mafe
700g lamb cut into cubes
1 onion, diced or minced
3 cloves garlic, minced or crushed
3/4 inch piece of ginger, minced
1 sweet potato, cubed
2 green peppers, cubed
4 tomatoes, peeled and diced
1 cup peanut butter
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2-3 cups water
Mild oil, e.g. vegetable or sunflower
1. Put a bit of oil in the pan and brown your meat on all sides. Remove and set aside.
2. Add more oil if needed and fry the onion, ginger, garlic, and peppers. Cook until the onions are clear.
3. Return the meat to the pan.
4. Add the tomato paste and the peanut butter and fry for 1-2 minutes.
5. Add the tomatoes, water, and sweet potatoes. Make sure you add enough water to cook the sweet potatoes, but don't go overboard. You can always add more water later if it is too thick. Don't worry if it looks very liquidy at this point, it will thicken as you cook it.
6. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to simmer for 1 hour. It will be quite thick.
7. Taste for seasonings. Serve with rice and Enjoy!
By Lisa Shames
Mafe is a West African peanut stew. It comes from Senegal but other West African countries have similar stews as well. The basic premise is pretty simple and easy to play with according to your preferences. It involves browning meat, frying onions and other aromatics, adding tomatoes/paste, peanut butter, and vegetables. You can use lamb, beef, or chicken, and any vegetables you wish, or use only vegetables for a vegetarian option. Play with aromatics. Here we used ginger and garlic, but other versions had thyme and bay. We used scotch bonnet and added them at the end for a bit of heat, but add it earlier if you are brave or omit it altogether if you can't stand the heat! Serve with rice, add chilis, lemon, lime, whatever takes your fancy! Be creative with this dish and enjoy!
