Hearty and Flavorful Peanut Chicken Stew Recipe

Alex is a self-proclaimed Disney expert who enjoys expanding her culinary skills in her free time.

This Dinner Is Always a Hit!

I found the original recipe on a website for camping cooking. Yes, really. This dish was originally made for cooking on a campfire. Which, honestly sounds amazing but I have no idea what I would do with the leftovers while camping.

The original recipe was vegan. The first time I made it I followed the recipe. My boyfriend had no idea there was no meat in dinner that night—until I told him. That was when he asked for me to make some alterations. Which is how I ended up with this dish. It can easily be made vegan, vegetarian, or the base protein be altered to a different animal protein. It is always a hit when I make it for dinner, and the girls at work are always jealous of my leftovers.

The chicken thighs will need about 12-15 minutes to get a good sear. This will provide a lot of flavor in the final product.

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Ingredients

• 1 sweet potato, peeled and diced
• 1 white onion, diced
• 4 ounces peanut butter, I like chunky
• 2 leaves kale, roughly torn
• 2 tablespoons chilli powder
• 2 cups chicken broth (or vegetable broth)
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 14 ounces chickpeas, drained
• salt
• pepper
• 6-8 chicken thighs, skin-on, boneless
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2-3 tablespoon garlic, minced

When all the broth is added all the little bits and pieces from the bottom of the pan will finish releasing. This adds a lot of flavor to the dish.

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Instructions

1. Season both sides of the chicken thighs with salt and pepper. Then place skin side down in a Dutch over. Turn to medium heat and cook for 12-15 minutes. The chicken thighs should release from the pan without much effort.
2. Place the chicken thighs on a cutting board and reserve. Heat the olive oil and then add the onion. Once the onion is soft then add the garlic. Sauté until fragrant. Chop the chicken thighs into small pieces.
3. Add the sweet potato, diced tomatoes (with their juices), broth, peanut butter, and chili powder. Add salt to taste. Add back the chicken thighs. Simmer for until sweet potatoes are tender and chicken is cooked through, about 15-20 minutes.
4. Add the chickpeas and kale to the pot. Turn off the heat and stir until the kale is wilted and chickpeas are warmed.
5. Serve as desired.

My Dutch Oven

Alterations and Substitutions

Of course this dish can be cooked without the chicken. And of course this dish can be made using vegetable broth instead of chicken broth. I'm willing to bet this meal would be amazing using shaved rib eye or stew beef. If you are more of a veggie-based person I think mushrooms would be fantastic. I can't say if tofu would be good or bad as I have never had it, but it looks like it would hold up well. I would imagine you don't even need to have another protein since there is peanut butter and chickpeas.

I've swapped spinach for kale a few times and didn't really notice a difference. I tend to have one or the other on hand so I just use what I have. Want more veggies? Chopped bell pepper, diced parsnips, or even quartered Brussels sprouts would be very good in this stew. I would sauté the Brussels first and then add them at the end to prevent the overall dish from being bitter.

See how nice and thick it is? This is once the chicken and sweet potatoes are cooked.

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Comments

Liz Westwood from UK on August 09, 2021:

This sounds like a tasty and versatile recipe. You have explained it well.