West African Peanut Soup

Lovers of Peanut Butter - you GOT to try this easy West African Peanut Soup! Creamy, savory and packed with healthy veggies and plant-based protein from chickpeas! Vegan and dairy-free! Chicken can be added. 

Calling team peanut butter lovers! After my all-time favorite peanut chicken recipe was so popular with you guys, here's another way to include peanut butter into your diet without having to pile on the sugar treats. West African Peanut Soup!

I adapted this recipe from Love Real Food, from Kathryne Taylor of Cookie+Kate, which I totally recommend to all of you. It’s one of my favorite cookbooks.

As a lover of all things peanut butter, this easy vegetarian peanut soup is probably my favorite soup ever. I make it over and over again every Fall and winter (and even in summer, when the craving strikes).

Peanut butter in a soup might sound strange but it works SO WELL. It makes it rich and creamy, with that special nutty peanut butter flavor. Absolutely delish.

With pb as a main ingredient, this is the kind of soup that really fills you while being pretty healthy, too. This soup is spicy, creamy, and delivers an abundance of nourishment for body and soul thanks to healthy peanut butter and protein-packed chickpeas. The broth is rich with spices (hello jalapeno, ginger, and garlic) and savory thanks to the tomato paste—one of the best plant-based umami-delivery foods ever.

This soup recipe is dairy-free and although I sometimes like to add some leftover rotisserie chicken, it’s just as good as is - all vegan.

You will love how easy this is and you can double the recipe and freeze some for later!  In other words, African Peanut Soup rules.

How to Make West African Peanut Soup:

Step 1 - Prep all your ingredients before starting.

Step 2- Heat olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add red onion, sweet potato and jalapeno. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 10 minutes or until the onion is translucent and the sweet potato is tender. Add ginger and garlic, and cook for another minute. Season with one teaspoon salt.

Step 3 - In the meantime, add peanut butter and tomato paste to a medium heat-proof bowl. Transfer a couple of cups of hot broth to the bowl and whisk until fully combined (add a bit more broth if the mixture is too thick). Pour the mixture into the soup and mix well.

Step 4 - Pour vegetable broth and water, and simmer on low heat for 10 minutes.

Step 5 - Stir in kale and chickpeas and continue cooking until soup is nice and thick, and kale is wilted, about 15-20 minutes.

Step 6 - Season the soup with Sriracha sauce to taste, and more salt if needed.

Serve with lots of chopped peanuts and cilantro leaves. Enjoy!

Tips:

• When it comes to peanut butter, “natural” peanut butter, made from peanuts and salt and nothing else works best. I like making my own using this easy peanut butter recipe.
• Chunky or creamy peanut butter? It doesn’t matter much.
• If you want, add 1 tsp of cumin to up the West African flair.
• Some people serve this stew-like peanut soup over rice or cauliflower rice but I like to eat it as-is.
• I like a simple garnish of crunchy peanuts and a little cilantro but some fresh lime or lemon slices would also be great.
• Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for 4 days. The soup will get thicker as it cools down. Add more stock or water to reheat the leftovers.

5 from 5 votes

Print

West African Peanut Soup

Lovers of Peanut Butter - you GOT to try this easy West African Peanut Soup! Creamy, savory and packed with healthy veggies and plant-based protein from chickpeas! Vegan and dairy-free! Chicken can be added.

Course Main Course, Soup

Cuisine African

Keyword Peanut Soup recipes, vegan soup recipes

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 45 minutes

Servings 6

Calories 358 kcal

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium red onion chopped
• 1 medium sweet potato peeled and diced
• 1 jalapeño pepper seeded and finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh ginger minced
• 4 garlic cloves minced
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 2 cups water
• ¾ cup natural creamy peanut butter
• ¾ cup tomato paste 6 oz/170g
• 2 cups kale leaves chopped finely - or collard greens
• 1 can 14 oz chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• Hot sauce like Sriracha - to taste
• ¼ cup roasted peanuts roughly chopped
• ½ cup cilantro leaves roughly chopped

Instructions

1. Prep all your ingredients before starting.
2. Heat olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add red onion, sweet potato and jalapeno. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 10 minutes or until the onion is translucent and the sweet potato is tender. Add ginger and garlic, and cook for another minute. Season with one teaspoon salt.
3. Pour vegetable broth and water, and simmer on low heat for 10 minutes.
4. In the meantime, add peanut butter and tomato paste to a medium heat-proof bowl. Transfer a couple of cups of hot broth to the bowl and whisk until fully combined (add a bit more broth if the mixture is too thick). Pour the mixture into the soup and mix well.
5. Stir in kale and chickpeas and continue cooking until soup is nice and thick, and kale is wilted, about 15-20 minutes.
6. Season the soup with Sriracha sauce to taste, and more salt if needed.
7. Serve with lots of chopped peanuts and cilantro leaves. Enjoy!

Recipe Notes

• When it comes to peanut butter, “natural” peanut butter, made from peanuts and salt and nothing else works best. I like making my own using this easy peanut butter recipe.
• Chunky or creamy peanut butter? It doesn’t matter much.
• If you want, add 1 tsp of cumin to up the West African flair.
• Some people serve this stew-like peanut soup over rice, or cauliflower rice but I like to eat it as-is.
• I like a simple garnish of crunchy peanuts and a little cilantro but some fresh lime or lemon slices would also be great.
• Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for 4 days. The soup will get thicker as it cools down. Add more stock or water to reheat the leftovers.

Nutrition Facts

West African Peanut Soup

Amount Per Serving

Calories 358 Calories from Fat 216

% Daily Value*

Fat 24g37%

Saturated Fat 5g31%

Sodium 1095mg48%

Potassium 885mg25%

Carbohydrates 28g9%

Fiber 5g21%

Sugar 11g12%

Protein 13g26%

Vitamin A 8521IU170%

Vitamin C 41mg50%

Calcium 88mg9%

Iron 2mg11%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

If you tried this African Peanut Soup recipe, don’t forget to rate the recipe below and let me know how it went in the comments – I love hearing from you! You can also follow me on Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook for more deliciousness and behind-the-scenes!

More healthy soup and stew recipes from the blog:

• Vegan Moroccan Spiced Chickpea Soup
• Creamy Mushroom and Rice Soup
• Healthy Turkey Taco Soup
• Beef and Sweet Potato Chili
• Broccoli Cheese Soup