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Potato leaf stew with groundnut
Potato leaf: Sierra Leone's sweet potato greens in palm oil, made meat-free with groundnut paste
Freetown's Sunday pots and the cookshops of Lumley and Kissy turn out potato leaf almost as often as cassava leaf: tender sweet potato greens shredded finely, then simmered in red palm oil with onion and Scotch bonnet until the oil floats to the top. It is usually rich with fish or beef; this meat-free pot leans on a good spoonful of groundnut paste instead, which makes the sauce creamy and nutty and gives it real body. Spoon it over a mound of white rice, the way it is eaten all over Sierra Leone. Chef's tip: wait until the palm oil gathers in a red layer on the surface before you take the pot off the heat; that is the sign the stew is properly cooked.
- Total time
- 75 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 1 ⅓ lb sweet potato leavesfresh or frozen from African or Asian grocers; or spinach, cooked for only 10 minutes in step 5
- ½ cup red palm oil
- 2 onionschopped
- 3 garlic clovescrushed
- 1 Scotch bonnet chilliblended; use 2 for a hotter stew
- 2 ½ cups vegetable stock
- 1 tsp ogiri (fermented sesame) (optional)or 1 tsp fermented black beans, mashed
- 1 tsp salt
- cooked white rice (optional)to serve
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Strip the 1 ⅓ lb sweet potato leaves from their tough stems and wash well. Roll a handful into a tight bundle and slice it as finely as you can; repeat. Thick-cut leaves are the usual mistake: they stay chewy however long they cook.
15 minStep 2: Warm the ½ cup red palm oil in a heavy pot over a medium heat for 2 minutes, add the 2 onions and cook for 6 minutes until soft.
8 minStep 3: Add the 3 garlic cloves and 1 Scotch bonnet chilli and stir for 2 minutes until fragrant.
2 minStep 4: Add the leaves and stir for 5 minutes until wilted and bright.
5 minStep 5: Whisk the 4 oz smooth unsalted peanut butter with 200 ml of the 2 ½ cups vegetable stock until smooth, then stir it into the pot with the rest of the stock, the 1 tsp ogiri (fermented sesame) and the 1 tsp salt. Cover and simmer over a low heat for 40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, until the leaves are soft, the sauce thick and a red layer of oil has risen.
40 minStep 6: Taste for salt and serve hot over cooked white rice.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 460 kcal
- Protein
- 12 g
- Carbs
- 15 g
- Fat
- 40 g
- Fibre
- 7 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does potato leaf stew with groundnut take?
- About 75 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 55 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 onions?
- 2 shallots per onion.
- What can I use instead of garlic cloves?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
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