West Africans Finest Mafe Recipes

CHICKEN MAFE

Steps:

• Finely mince 6 cloves garlic and the ginger with a pinch of salt, plenty of black pepper and crushed red-pepper flakes to taste. Season chicken all over with salt, and rub with the garlic mixture. Marinate for three hours or overnight, refrigerated.
• Finely chop the remaining 6 cloves of garlic. In a large Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-high heat. When it is hot, add the onion, chopped garlic, 2 teaspoons kosher salt and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes, until the onion is starting to become translucent. Stir in the fish sauce, then the tomato paste, and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes, until the paste and onions have combined and are a shade darker. Stir in 6 cups water, scraping up any browned bits.
• Add the chicken, bring to a boil and turn heat down to a moderate simmer. In a mixing bowl, stir a cup of the cooking liquid into the peanut butter, a splash at a time, to loosen it. Pour the peanut butter mixture into the pot, and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the cabbage and carrots, and simmer 10 minutes. Peel and cut the sweet potato and waxy potatoes into 1 1/2-inch chunks, add them and simmer 30 minutes, until the vegetables and chicken are tender and the sauce is like a very thick gravy. (The oil will be separating in the sauce.) If the chicken and vegetables are tender but the sauce is still a little loose, remove them, and let the sauce cook down. Add the chile if using. Taste, adjust seasoning with salt and serve over white rice.

MAAFé

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a heavy saucepan, add the onion, and cook over medium heat until it is translucent.
• Add the meat and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until it is lightly browned on all sides.
• In a small bowl, mix the peanut butter with 1-½ cup (400 ml) of cold water and pour it over the meat.
• Dilute the tomato paste with 2 cups (500 ml) of hot water, and pour over the stew. Stir well.
• Add the remaining ingredients and lower the heat. Cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour, or until the meat is tender.
• Remove the thyme sprigs and bay leaves. Serve hot over white rice.

WEST AFRICAN GROUNDNUT STEW (MAFE)

Steps:

• Combine peanut butter and 1/4 cup water.
• Saute onion and green pepper in a little oil until soft, about 5 minutes.
• In a large pot, add black-eyed peas (or meat), peanuts, water, beef stock (or water), tomatoes, tomato paste, all vegetables, spices, and peanut butter mixture. Stir well to combine.
• Simmer on low heat for at least an hour, up to 4 hours, stirring occasionally. You may want to add more water to bring the stew to your desired consistency.
• Serve over rice. Garnish with bananas or pineapple.

"WEST AFRICAN'S FINEST" MAFE

Steps:

• In a large pot over medium heat, heat the peanut oil. Add the carrots, garlic, potatoes, sweet potatoes and onions and mix well. Stir in the tomato paste, paprika, cayenne, cumin, thyme sprigs, chickpeas, salt and black pepper and mix well. Add the stock, making sure the level of the stock is above the veggies in the pot. Add additional salt and pepper to taste.
• Cover and bring to boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the veggies are tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Turn off the heat but leave the pot on the stove. Stir in the creamy peanut butter, mix well and let sit for 5 minutes before serving.
• Serve with basmati rice, quinoa, couscous or fufu.