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Curried peanut butter soup with coconut milk is rich, creamy, slightly spicy, and super comforting – It’s gluten-free, dairy-free, vegan & made on the stove or in a slow cooker!
Table of contents
What is Peanut Butter Soup?
If you’ve never tried or even heard of peanut soup before, then we don’t blame you for wondering what it’s all about and if it’s really soup made from peanuts. The answer is yes! (but not only peanuts, of course).
Peanut soup, also called groundnut soup, is actually an African staple, often referred to as West African peanut soup or Ghanaian peanut butter soup (or ‘maafe’), but enjoyed in other places around Africa, East Asia, and even Virginia in the US.
The recipe can vary quite a bit, but the base of the soup is made from ground peanuts for a rich, creamy, nutty flavor. The nuts are combined with other ingredients, which may include onion, tomatoes, sweet potato, leafy greens, protein, broth, and various herbs and spices.
Why You’ll Love This Sweet Potato Peanut Soup
For our quick and simple – but not exactly traditional – recipe for African peanut soup, we’ve made a sweet and creamy sweet potato peanut soup made with simple ingredients like curry powder, cayenne pepper, and coconut milk for super satisfying creamy, savory, aromatic, spicy flavors.
Not only do the peanuts add flavor, but they also have a velvety texture and a heap of protein. It’s as satisfying and nourishing as it is cozy and comforting. Best of all, it’s cheap to make, pantry-friendly, adaptable in several ways, easy to throw together in one pot (on the stove or in a crockpot), and can be made ahead and even frozen.
Want to try even more creamy vegan soups? Try our vegan broccoli soup, Thai butternut squash soup, or curried carrot ginger soup.
The Ingredients and Substitutes
- Oil: We like using olive oil, but avocado or vegetable oil also works great.
- Aromatics: A combination of fresh red or yellow onion and garlic cloves make for a complex, flavorful soup base.
- Sweet potato: For sweetness and creamy texture in this peanut butter soup recipe. We use regular orange sweet potatoes – yams would work, too.
Several ingredients will work similarly. E.g., butternut squash and peanut butter soup, peanut butter pumpkin soup, or even carrot peanut soup.
- Vegetable broth: Use store-bought or homemade rich vegetable stock, regular or reduced sodium, or stock pots/cubes + water. Vegan chicken broth would work, too.
- Canned tomatoes: Use high-quality – like fire-roasted tomatoes.
- Peanut butter: We prefer chunky peanut butter for extra texture in the peanut soup recipe. However, you can use smooth. Natural peanut butter is best.
- Coconut milk: Canned coconut milk helps to make this vegan peanut soup creamy and decadent. Other dairy-free cream should work fine, too.
- Cayenne pepper: (optional) or red pepper flakes/ finely minced serrano or jalapeno pepper for spicy peanut soup.
- Curry powder: Cut down on time and effort by replacing individual herbs/spices (like ginger, cumin, etc.) with curry powder spice blend (mild, medium, or hot).
Replace the curry powder with green or red Thai curry paste for Thai peanut soup.
What Could I Add to Vegan Peanut Soup?
- Protein: Add more protein to this vegan/ vegetarian peanut soup with diced tofu or canned chickpeas/lentils.
- Spinach: Add fresh or frozen spinach (or kale) in the last few minutes for extra nutrients and a bit of color/freshness.
- Bay leaves: Add 1-2 bay leaves for subtle herbal depth.
- Lime or lemon juice: To add at the end for brightness and acidity.
- More spices: Tweak the flavors with additional cumin, turmeric, ground ginger, etc.
- Fresh herbs: To garnish, like cilantro or green onions.
- Other garnishes: Like roasted peanuts or seeds, croutons, etc.
How to Make Sweet Potato Peanut Soup
- First, peel and dice the sweet potato and onion and mince the garlic.
- Then, heat the oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan over medium-high heat. Once hot, sauté the onion for 2-3 minutes until translucent.
- Stir in the garlic and curry powder and sauté for 2 minutes. Then, add the sweet potatoes and sauté for another 2 minutes.
- Add the tomatoes, broth, and (if using) cayenne pepper, then stir, cover, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce to a simmer for 20 minutes.
- Stir in the peanut butter and coconut milk, then cover and simmer for 30 minutes.
Leave the soup chunky, blend a portion, or blend the entire soup either with an immersion blender or a regular blender. If using the latter, hold down the lid with a kitchen towel and open the lid occasionally to allow the steam to escape.
Slow Cooker Peanut Butter Soup
- Add all the ingredients except the peanut butter and coconut milk to the crock pot, mix well, and cook for 6-7 hours on LOW or 3-4 hours on HIGH, stirring occasionally. Add more broth/water if needed.
- Stir in the peanut butter and coconut milk at the end (or in the last 20 minutes). Enjoy!
Recipe Pro Tips
- To save time: You could buy prepared chopped onion and sweet potato and minced garlic.
- Use high-quality stock: Use a good-quality, rich stock for the best-flavored soup.
- To adjust the consistency: Add less/more broth to achieve your desired consistency.
- For creamy peanut butter soup: Blend some or all of the soup.
- Be careful if blending: Steam can build up and cause the lid to blow off and send scalding liquid flying. We recommend holding down the lid, being careful not to overfill the machine, and opening the lid occasionally to allow the steam to escape.
- To use whole peanuts: Replace the peanut butter with 3/4-1 cup of unsalted, roasted whole peanuts. Simmer them in the soup to soften, then blend the mixture.
Serving Suggestions
If you want to enjoy this peanut soup recipe traditionally, then you could try it with fufu (pounded meal), omo tuo (soft rice balls), or regular rice, and/or banku (slightly fermented maize/ cassava dough balls). Alternatively, enjoy a bowl with:
- Bread (fluffy vegan dinner rolls, homemade vegan bread, vegan focaccia, garlic bread, etc.)
- Vegan cornbread
- A salad (leafy green side salad with vinaigrette works best). It’d go well with this beet salad, roasted pumpkin salad, or artichoke salad.
Storage Instructions
Leave the soup to cool and store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. It tastes even better on day two! There are the containers I used in the photo above, and these are the labels I always use for my leftovers.
You can also freeze the soup, though the texture of the potatoes may change slightly upon thawing and require re-blending for a few seconds. To freeze it, transfer it to Ziplock/Stasher bags or a silicone muffin tray for 3-4 months.
Allow it to thaw in the refrigerator overnight, then reheat the soup gently on the stovetop over medium-low heat or in 30-second intervals in the microwave, stirring in between. Add more broth or curry powder if needed.
More Vegan Soup Recipes
- Vegetable barley soup
- Garbanzo bean soup
- Vegan chicken noodle soup
- Vegan chickpea noodle soup
- Mexican bean soup
- Potato leek soup
- Easy hot and sour soup
Sweet Potato Peanut Butter Soup
Video
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon of neutral oil
- 1 small yellow or red onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon of curry powder
- 2 large sweet potatoes, diced
- 2 cups of vegetable broth
- 28 ounces of whole tomatoes, drained and chopped
- ½ teaspoon of cayenne pepper (optional)
- ½ cup of chunky peanut butter
- ½ cup of coconut milk
Instructions
- In a large pot over medium-high heat, heat the oil. Add onion and saute for 2 minutes, until the onion is translucent and tender. Add the garlic and curry powder and saute for another 2 minutes.
- Add the sweet potatoes and cook for 2 more minutes.
- Add tomatoes, veggie broth, and cayenne pepper. Cover, bring to a boil, and lower to a simmer for 20 minutes.
- Add peanut butter and coconut milk to the pot. Cover and let simmer for 30 minutes.
Notes
- To save time: You could buy prepared chopped onion and sweet potato and minced garlic.
- Use high-quality stock: Use a good-quality, rich stock for the best flavored soup.
- To adjust the consistency: Add less/more broth to achieve your desired consistency.
- For creamy peanut butter soup: Blend some or all of the soup.
Nutrition
Disclaimer: Although plantbasedonabudget.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, kindly note that these are only estimates. Nutritional information may be affected based on the product type, the brand that was purchased, and in other unforeseeable ways. Plantbasedonabudget.com will not be held liable for any loss or damage resulting for your reliance on nutritional information. If you need to follow a specific caloric regimen, please consult your doctor first.
Instructions for slow cooker? Thanks.
Here you go:
Add all the ingredients except the peanut butter and coconut milk to the crock pot, mix well, and cook for 6-7 hours on LOW or 3-4 hours on HIGH, stirring occasionally. Add more broth/water if needed.
Stir in the peanut butter and coconut milk at the end (or in the last 20 minutes). Enjoy!
This Sweet Potato Peanut Butter Soup is so easy to make and comforting to eat! Thanks for another great recipe.
So glad you enjoyed this tasty soup!
Love all the flavors!