Ghanaian Peanut Soup (Nkatenkwan)
Nkatenkwan is Ghana's peanut soup, a rich red-brown bowl of chicken simmered with tomato, onion and fresh chile. The peanut butter is cooked separately until its oil floats to the top, which gives the soup its depth and tells you when it is ready. The base is blended from the softened onions and tomatoes. Okra goes in at the end, and fufu is the traditional partner for soaking up the broth.
Instructions
Put the chicken pieces in a large pot. Trim the top and bottom off the onions and add them whole.
Core the tomatoes and add them whole to the pot. Grate the garlic and ginger, or add them whole, since everything softened in the pot gets blended later.
Add the bay leaves, kpakpo shito peppers and chicken stock. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until the chicken is tender.
While that simmers, stir the peanut butter with ½ cup of the water in a second pot until completely smooth.
Set the peanut mixture over high heat and add the remaining water gradually. Simmer for about 20 minutes, until the peanut oil rises to the surface.
When the onions and tomatoes are soft, lift them out of the broth and blend them until smooth. For a spicier soup, add a few more kpakpo shito peppers to the blender. Pour the purée back into the chicken pot, stir, and simmer for 5 minutes.
Pour the peanut mixture gently into the soup and simmer for 15 minutes.
Boil the okra briefly, including the head and tail, then add it to the soup.
Taste and adjust with salt and chili powder. Serve with fufu or another accompaniment you like.
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