Easy Groundnut Soup

I like to make large quantities of soup, which I store over a period of time in the freezer. One of my go to soups is groundnut soup. It's very easy to make if you can follow recipes and very delicious. I love it for the one reason that it pairs so beautifully with almost everything. You literally cannot go wrong with this soup. I hope you enjoy this 3 step groundnut soup. Though the steps are short, it’s a forever favorite.

Enjoy!!!!

Recipe

What you need

1/2 cup groundnut paste

1/2 kg  hard/stewing chicken thigh, cut into desired sizes

3 large fresh mackerel cleaned ( cut into desired sizes)

1 large onion, finely chopped

2 medium onions, roughly chopped

1 small garlic clove

1 small ginger 

1 kako

1/2 cup chili (adjust)

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 teaspoon cloves

2 star anise

Salt to taste

pepper, as much as you want

4 basil leaves/akokommesa

 Direction

In a blender, add the groundnut paste and tomato paste. Add a cup of water and pulse until it combines fully. Pour mixture in a pot and cook until very thick and oil collects on the surface. Blend the roughly chopped onions , garlic, pepper, cloves and anise with little water.  Put cleaned mackerel in a bowl and add a tablespoon of blended mixture including salt and set aside.

Put chicken in a pan over medium heat. Add diced onion, stir and cook for 2 mins. Add the rest of blended mixture to the chicken. Add salt, cover and allow to simmer for 10 mins. Add enough water to cover the chicken then add the kako.  Cover and allow to continue simmering until chicken is halfway cooked. Taste and adjust salt. Add the seasoned mackerel and stir in a circular manner. Allow to cook for 10 min then remove and set aside again.

Add cooked groundnut mixture to the soup. If the soup gets too thick after adding the cooked groundnut paste add a bit water to lighten it up. Allow the soup to continue simmering until the chicken is completely cooked. Add the cooked mackerel and basil. Taste and adjust salt. Cook for and additional 5 mins and turn off heat. Scoop out excess oil if it’s too much for you. If soup is too thick, just add water to thin it. Make sure to adjust salt and seasoning after each addition of water.

Serve with steamed rice, banku or potatoes.