Sequestration Meal #469

 

Although this may look like fall food, and it isn't yet cool enough to warrant that, it is okra, tomato, and eggplant season, so I was in the mood for West African peanut stew (recipe from My Front Burner) with rice in spite of the heat. I made a few modifications to the recipe (and I cut it in half) based on my previous experience, and I recommend them all.

First, I cut the eggplant into much small pieces than 1-inch cubes, because you want them to be meltingly soft here, and 1-inch is too big for them to cook in the same time as the rest. I put in about 1.5x the amount of okra, which is also something I'd recommend, even though you will end up with a thicker stew, because, well, okra. And I also added some no-chicken bouillon rather than just using extra salt and pepper to season everything as it cooked. Finally, I let everything simmer for about 45 minutes, rather than 30, to make sure the veggies got soft enough for my liking.

This stew is really delicious, and also, it's pretty cheap stuff, considering that it is primarily vegetables cooked in a peanut butter broth. You could substitute a lot of different veggies here and it would be wonderful--I could easily substitute zucchini for eggplant, or carrot for sweet potato, for example.

I could also see this being delicious with grits rather than rice, and I may try that with some of the leftovers. Stay tuned for a report back in a "random meals" post sometime if I try it!

Although this stew is not suitable for people with peanut allergies for obvious reasons, it is gluten free and soy free, too, if you're looking for those options.