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Groundnut soup (nkatenkwan)
Ghanaian peanut soup with tomato, ginger, garden eggs and mushrooms, served with rice balls
Nkatenkwan is the Sunday soup of Ghanaian homes, simmered while families are at church and eaten afterwards with omo tuo (soft rice balls) or fufu. Roasted groundnut paste is cooked slowly in a peppery tomato and ginger broth until the oil separates and turns the soup a rich orange-brown. It usually carries chicken or goat; here garden eggs (small African aubergines) and mushrooms keep it meaty without meat. Chef's tip: cook the groundnut paste long and slow; it is ready only when reddish oil rises and pools on top, and rushing it leaves a raw, pasty taste.
- Total time
- 60 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Put 1 onion, 3 ripe tomatoes, 1 oz fresh ginger, 3 cloves garlic and 1 scotch bonnet chilli into a large pot with 600 ml of 0.6 litres vegetable stock. Boil over a medium heat until the tomatoes are soft.
12 minStep 2: Lift out the vegetables (leave the chilli whole in the pot, or remove it for less heat) and blend them smooth, then return to the pot.
Step 3: Mix 7 oz unsweetened smooth peanut butter or groundnut paste and 2 tbsp tomato paste with a ladle of the hot liquid until smooth and runny, then stir into the pot with the rest of the 0.6 litres vegetable stock.
Step 4: Add 4 small round aubergines and simmer over a medium-low heat, stirring now and then so nothing catches, until the oil rises to the top in an orange layer.
20 minStep 5: Add 9 oz oyster or chestnut mushrooms and 1 tsp salt and simmer until the mushrooms are tender. A common mistake is a soup that is too thick: it should be pourable, like single cream, so add a splash of water if needed.
8 minStep 6: Serve hot over rice balls or with fufu.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 400 kcal
- Protein
- 17 g
- Carbs
- 20 g
- Fat
- 30 g
- Fibre
- 8 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does groundnut soup (nkatenkwan) take?
- About 60 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 45 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
- What can I use instead of ripe tomatoes?
- Tinned chopped tomatoes: a 400g tin for about 6 tomatoes (in cooked dishes, not salads).
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