KOKONTE AND PEANUT BUTTER SOUP (GHANA)

For many of us some of the greatest influences for our love of cooking and food has been a mother figure. Several of my childhood memories include the breathtaking smell of cooking Ghanaian dishes.

My mom @homemadebyewurakua taught me that good food is about simplicity, fresh ingredients and a lot of care and love. In fact, one of my favorite recipes from my mom is Kokonte with peanut butter soup. So light and simple but its how it is prepared, cooked and garnished that makes it mouthwatering. My weekends are mostly spent in the kitchen with my mother, helping to tackle her latest catering orders.

Her touch is nostalgic and delicious and made with love.

Peanut Butter Soup Ingredients

3 cups peanut butter/6 cups of water

3 medium tomatoes

4 medium onions (2 red/2 yellow)

6 cloves of garlic

4 scotch bonnet peppers

50 grams of ginger

2 tablespoons tomato paste

2 cubes of maggi

1 tablespoon of salt

Bay leaves

Meats (cow foot, beef, smoked turkey, snails, smoked red snapper and crabs) or any meats of your choice.

Instructions

• Mix together in a bowl 3 cups of peanut butter and 3 cups of water.
• Stir until smooth and pour into a pan, add 2 tablespoons of tomato paste and cook until it thickens up again. When it is ready, the oil from the peanut butter will show on the surface.
• In a large pot, put together cow foot, beef and smoked turkey.
• Chop finely 1 yellow onion and add to meats.
• For marinade, blend 2 red onions and 1 yellow onion with the garlic, ginger and scotch bonnet peppers with ½ a cup of water.
• Add the marinade to the meat, followed by 2 Maggi cubes, bay leaves and 1 teaspoon of salt to taste or to your preference.
• Stir and add whole tomatoes and allow to simmer for 20 minutes.
• Remove whole tomatoes and blend them with 1 cup of water.
• Strain blended tomatoes back into the pot and allow to cook for about 10 minutes till the meat is tender.
• Transfer the peanut butter paste into the pot, along with 4 cups and allow to cook for another 20 minutes.
• Add crabs and let it simmer for 10 minutes
• Add snails for another 10 minutes.
• Lastly add smoked red snapper and allow to simmer for 8 minutes
• Once bubbles are leaving surface and oil is beginning to form on the surface your soup should be ready to be served.

Kokonte Ingredients

3 cups of cassava flour

4 cups of water

Instructions:

• Place 4 cups of water in a pot and let it boil
• When the water begins to boil, pour 1 cup of water and put it aside.
• Pour the cassava flour into the boiling water in bits, stirring continuously to avoid lumps.
• Add ½ cup or as need of the 1 cup of water set aside, cover it and allow the kokonte to cook for about 15-20 minutes
• Continue kneading the Kokonte till there are no more lumps.
• Finally, scoop and mold the konkonte into bowls
• Serve while still hot with soup of your preference.

Okro:

Handful of okro

½ cup of water

Pinch of salt

Instructions:

• Wash okro and cut the heads and a little bit of the tails off.
• In a small pan add washed okro and ½ a cup of water and then steam a handful of okro.
• Add a pinch of salt and let it simmer for 8 mins.
• Drain and then garnish dished kokonte and peanut butter soup with okro.

Video: 

Recipe by @homemadebyewurakua