African Lentil Peanut Stew

No bells and whistles for this one. Just a bowl full of deliciousness. Sometimes great gifts come in brown paper packages! That’s the case with this unassuming stew.

I know it just looks like a pot of brown mush. But it smells divine and surprisingly my toddler gobbles up bowl after bowl. It’s kind of like a peanut butter sandwich meets a savory oatmeal but with lentils and sweet potatoes? Okay maybe not. But trust me. It’s delicious and now you can expand your meal plan to another continent.

Cayenne pepper for added heat, curry powder, cumin

Makes: 5 quarts

Cooking Time: 45 min (stovetop), 60 min (instant pot), 4 hours (crockpot)

African Lentil Peanut Stew

INGREDIENTS:

• 1.5 cups green lentils
• 5 cups water
• 2 medium sweet potatoes, skinned & diced
• 2 small bell peppers, diced (yellow, orange, or red)
• 1/2 yellow onion, diced*
• 1 Tbs minced garlic *
• 1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes
• 1 Tbs cumin
• 1 Tbs curry powder
• 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (this results in a medium- level heat)
• 1/4 cup natural peanut butter
• 1 Tbs Sea Salt
• 1 Tbs Avocado Oil (optional)

Garnish with peanuts if desired and sea salt to taste

*you can sub the fresh with 2 tsp garlic powder and 2 tsp onion powder.

INSTRUCTIONS:

Stove Top:

1. Water or oil saute diced onion and garlic in large lidded pot, then add seasoning till fragrant.
2. Add the rest of the veggies, lentils and water. ***Not the peanut butter yet!
3. Bring to a boil and then lower heat to simmer with lid on for 35-45 minutes. Check to make sure your lentils are soft and burst open, not crunchy still.
4. Remove from heat.
5. Smash with a potato masher about 70% leaving some intact veggies.
6. Stir in the peanut butter
7. Let sit 10 min to thicken
8. Serve with bread, pita, tortilla chips or inside a baked potato or sweet potato!
9. Garnish with peanuts and season with more salt and pepper to taste!
10. Enjoy!

Crockpot:

1. Cook all in slow cooker on high for 5 hours.
2. Smash with a potato masher about 70% leaving some intact veggies.
3. Stir in the peanut butter
4. Let sit 10 min to thicken
5. Serve with bread, pita, tortilla chips or inside a baked potato or sweet potato!
6. Garnish with peanuts and season with more salt and pepper to taste!
7. Enjoy!

Instant Pot Pressure Cooker:

1. Add all the ingredients in the pot in this order: Water, seasoning, lentils, onion & garlic, sweet potato, then tomatoes. Do not stir. Set vent to sealing, man manual pressure cook 15 minutes with natural pressure release. *the total time is about 1 hour for it to come to pressure, cook, and release pressure.
2. Smash with a potato masher about 70% leaving some intact veggies.
3. Stir in the peanut butter
4. Let sit 10 min to thicken
5. Serve with bread, pita, tortilla chips or inside a baked potato or sweet potato!
6. Garnish with peanuts and season with more salt and pepper to taste!
7. Enjoy!

Serve with bread, pita, tortilla chips or inside a baked potato or sweet potato or even potato rounds!

If you like Instant Pot recipes you should check out this next:

http://bellavirtue.com/eat/instant-pot-or-stove-top-cream-of-potato-soup-gfv/

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