This West African Lamb Stew is full of flavor, comforting, and the perfect dish to add to your dinner table this fall!
Since I’ve been a child my favorite meal to eat has always been rice and stew. It didn’t matter what kind of stew as long as it was accompanied by some rice; I was always satisfied! As I’ve gotten older, I’ve been loving playing around with the recipes I grew up eating and trying to make them even better. And let me just tell you; I hit the jackpot when it comes to this lamb stew!
Playing around with West African flavors like stewed tomatoes, habanero peppers, and peanut butter lead me to develop this delicious stew and it couldn’t be any easier to make! I decided to use lamb for this recipe, but you can honestly use any protein you prefer (like beef or chicken). Cooking times will vary based on the protein you use as tougher cuts of meat like the lamb will need to cook longer. I also used butternut squash in this recipe and if you cut them into bite size chunks they shouldn’t take too long to cook.
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The flavors in dish are perfect for fall. There’s enough of a heat and spice level that’ll warm your belly right up, and bring you just the right amount of comfort! You can add whatever seasonal vegetables you’d like to this dish; I went with butternut squash but carrots, pumpkin, green beans are all acceptable to add!
You can adjust the heat level in this west African lamb stew by leaving out the scotch bonnet peppers if you’re not a fan of high spice. I really hope you all enjoy this recipe as it’s really special to me and just so DAMN good. Check out the recipe below!
West African Lamb Stew
This West African Lamb Stew is full of flavor, comforting, and the perfect dish to add to your dinner table this fall!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds of grass-fed boneless lamb stew meat
- 3 cups of diced tomatoes
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 1/2 cup parsley, chopped
- 1/2 inch chunk of ginger
- 3 sprigs of fresh thyme
- 1 stalk of celery
- 2 small onions, one onion cubed and one onion cut into thin slices
- 1 1/2 cups butternut squash, cubed
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 3 whole scotch bonnet peppers
- 1/2 tbsp African red pepper
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 Maggi seasoning cube
- 2 tbsp peanut butter
Instructions
- Wash and trim your lamb of any excess fat. Make sure your lamb is cut into stew sized pieces. Add some olive oil to a medium sized pot over medium to high heat and add the lamb in batches. Sear the lamb on each side about 3-4 minutes just until it caramelizes and turns brown. You will need to sear the meat in batches as overcrowding the pot will result in meat that doesn’t brown. Remove the pot and set aside.
- Blend all the fresh herbs (parsley, ginger, celery, onion that was cubed, 1 sprig of thyme) with about 1/4 cup of water. Add the blend to the same pot the lamb was browned in, but make sure to add only 3/4 of the sauce. Reserve 1/4 of the sauce and set aside. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat for about 20 minutes. Season the blend with a maggi cube and some salt to taste. After 20 minutes the sauce should have cooked down. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
- In the same pot, heat 4 tbsp olive oil over medium to high heat. Add the sliced onions and fry 2-3 minutes until golden brown. Add the diced tomatoes and tomato sauce to the pot and fry for 20 minutes. Make sure to consistently stir the sauce so it doesn’t burn. Make sure to cover the pot.
- After 20 minutes, add the butternut squash, lamb, thyme, and habanero peppers to the pot. Also add the remaining 1/4 of the sauce along with the cooked sauce to the pot. Combine all together. Add about 1/2 cup of water just until it covers all the ingredients. Bring to a boil, and reduce to a low simmer. Allow to cook for 20 more minutes until the lamb and butternut squash are tender. Serve with white rice and fried plantains if desired.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 356Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 82mgSodium: 542mgCarbohydrates: 23gFiber: 7gSugar: 11gProtein: 30g
Sarah Voigt
April 7, 2023This looks delicious! I do not have maggi seasoning available where I live, would you recommend substituting with soy sauce or something else?
Evi Aki
May 18, 2023Hi Sarah, thank you so much! Yes, you can definitely substitute with soy sauce or even a seasoning cube!