Nkatenkwan
Groundnut Soup
Creamy, peanut-rich soup with tender chicken, served with rice balls.
- Total time
- 1 hr 15 min
- Serves
- 6
- Level
- Easy
Groundnut soup, or nkatenkwan, is a thick, nutty, gently spicy soup made from peanut butter simmered in a tomato and pepper broth. It is traditionally eaten with omotuo (rice balls), but also pairs well with fufu, banku or plain rice.
Ingredients
- 1 kg chicken pieces (or goat or beef)
- 1 cup natural unsweetened peanut butter
- 3 ripe tomatoes
- 2 onions
- 2 to 3 scotch bonnets
- 1 inch ginger and 3 cloves garlic
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tbsp smoked fish or crayfish (optional)
- Salt and stock cube, to taste
- 6 cups water
- 1 cup aubergine or garden eggs (optional)
Method
- 01
Season the chicken with half the onion (chopped), ginger, garlic, salt and stock cube. Steam in a covered pot with a splash of water for 10 minutes.
- 02
Blend the tomatoes, remaining onion and scotch bonnets. Add to the pot with 4 cups of water and simmer for 15 minutes.
- 03
Mix the peanut butter with 2 cups of warm water until smooth and runny.
- 04
Stir the peanut mixture into the soup. Do not cover the pot.
- 05
Simmer on medium-low heat for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring now and then, until the soup thickens and a reddish oil floats on top.
- 06
Add the smoked fish, thyme and garden eggs if using, and cook 10 more minutes. Taste for salt.
- 07
Serve with omotuo, fufu, banku or rice.
Kitchen tips
- Use natural peanut butter with no sugar. Sweetened butter will ruin the soup.
- Leave the pot uncovered so the soup reduces and the oil separates.
- Stir regularly. Peanut paste can stick and burn at the bottom.
Cooking abroad?
Check the label so the peanut butter has only peanuts (and salt) in it. For omotuo, boil short-grain rice until very soft, mash with a wooden spoon, and shape into balls.
