Chicken in Peanut-Tomato Sauce

In Africa, peanuts are often called groundnuts, and many variations on this "chicken-groundnut stew" are found throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. Homemade peanut butter is often used in central African cooking. You can make your own homemade peanut butter by roasting peanuts, removing the shells, and then crushing the peanuts into a thick paste. See also: Groundnut Stew, Peanut Sauce, and Peanut Soup.

What you need

peanut oil (or any cooking oil)
one chicken (for the gourmet version, four to six chicken breasts) cut into bite-sized or serving-sized pieces
one or two onions, cut up
one or two cloves of garlic, minced (optional)
one cup tomato paste (or tomato sauce)
one cup peanut butter (natural, or homemade is best)
one cup water
cayenne pepper or red pepper, black pepper, salt

What you do

Heat a couple spoonfuls of oil in a deep pot. Add the chicken and fry it on both sides until it is browned and nearly done. Remove the chicken and set aside. (It might be best to fry part of the chicken and remove it, and then repeat the process two or three times. Chicken cooks best if the chicken pieces do not touch each other while frying.)
Fry the onions and garlic in the same pot. Stir in tomato paste. Reduce heat and simmer for a few minutes. Return chicken to pot. Stir in peanut butter (if using peanuts, first shell and roast them, then grind or mash them into a paste, adding water if needed). Be sure to use a very low heat or peanut butter will scorch. Stir in enough water to make tomato paste and peanut butter into a smooth sauce. Add spices to taste. Stir. Simmer on low heat until chicken is done.
Serve with Baton de Manioc (also called Chikwangue), or Fufu, or fried or boiled Plantains, or Rice.

Oven or grill variation: Use larger chicken pieces. Follow all directions but without chicken. Cook sauce over low heat until heated through. (Use low heat; be careful not to scorch.) Cook chicken in oven or on an outdoor grill. Pour sauce on chicken after chicken is done cooking.

Soup variation: Cut chicken into small bite-sized pieces. Follow all directions, but add an extra few cups of water or chicken broth.

More about Chicken in Peanut-Tomato Sauce in the Rare Recipes pages:

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Congo Cookbook recipes using Peanut Butter (or Peanuts)

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