I had the pleasure of using @wusthof knives to prepare this meatless Ghanaian Groundnut Soup! I am so used to preparing Ghanaian dishes with a meat, fish, or chicken base but in honor of Earth Month and practicing more sustainable cooking, I challenged myself to make this delicious Ghanaian meal meatless with a #sustainabilityswap. This recipe is equally as tasty as when it is prepared with meat and chicken. This version relies on the wonderful flavour of aromatics, mushrooms, spices, and of course, the star of the show: peanut butter. Eating more sustainably sometimes just requires swapping one ingredient and you’ll be surprised by the versatility of non-meat options. You seriously need to make this today because it is well worth it!
Vegetarian Rice Balls and Groundnut Soup (Omo tuo and Nkate Nkwan)
Ingredients
Soup
- 4 medium-large tomatoes or 6 smaller tomatoes
- 1 1/2 cup crushed tomato
- 1 large or 2 medium onions
- 2 pieces 3-4 inch ginger peeled
- 2 scotch bonnet peppers or to taste
- 2 garlic cloves
- Additional 3 scotch bonnet whole
- 11/2 cups natural peanut butter no sugar added
- 1/4 cup peanut oil or vegetable oil
- 2 veggie bouillon cubes
- 2 teaspoon cayenne
- 2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground black peppercorn
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 11/2 cups natural peanut butter no sugar added
- Salt to taste
Soup Add ins
- About 500 grams – 800 grams of Oyster shitake, and brown button mushrooms (more or less if desired)
- Okra optional
Tofu (optional)
- Paprika
- Salt
- Pepper
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
- Oil for pan fry
Rice balls
- 2 cups rice long grain white rice like jasmine rice
- 3 1/2 cups water
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
Make soup
- Add peeled garlic, onion, ginger, tomato and scotch bonnet in a pot with water and vegetable stock and bring to boil. Simmer on low until everything is nice and soft. This should take about 30 minutes.
- When the contents of your pot softens, remove and put in blender in batches. It will be very hot so remove the ventilation at the top of your blender cover and cover the whole with a dish cloth while blending to allow steam to escape. Blend until very very smooth and return to the pot. You can even strain before adding to pot if you want an extra smooth soup without too many traces of tomato skin,
- In a bowl, add the peanut butter, and 1-2 cups of water, smooth. The peanut butter water mixture should get thick, creamy, light in colour and smooth.
- Add this peanut butter mixture to your soup mixture and mix until fully incorporated into soup.
- Add your crushed tomatoes to your soup and 2-3 whole scotch bonnet. Add bouillon cubes.
- Add peanut or vegetable oil if using. The added oil is to make up for the lack of fat the is usually incorporated due to the use of meat. It can be easily omitted and if your peanut butter is particularly oily, it may not even be necessary. Typically when you make groundnut soup, the fat form the animal protein and peanuts settle on top and adds flavour and honestly, makes it look enticing so this is one way to achieve this same look.m Let your soup simmer for 30 minutes.
- Note: Taste and adjust ingredients to liking. Everyone prefers things to taste slightly different. I like my soup very ‘peanuty’ so may add more peanut butter. Adjustment examples include: additional bouillon cube, more salt, more pepper, more blended habanero, more crushed tomato or more water for a thinner soup.
Make add-ins
- While the soup is simmering, make okro, Trim off the ends and boil okro by adding desired amount to a small saucepan, adding water and boiling till done.
- Make your mushrooms by seasoning with desired amounts of paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper and fry in a pan with a bit of oil until golden brown. Set aside until you add it into soup.
- Make your tofu by seasoning with desired amounts of paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper and about 1/2 a tablespoon to 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and fry in a pan with a bit of oil until golden brown. Set aside until you add it into soup. Note: You can simply add plain tofu into your soup when you add your mushrooms and let it simmer for longer in the soup and serve. I want to avoid tofu pieces breaking apart in my soup which is why I don’t add it in during the cooking process. Adding it in during the cooking process does help it absorb the flavour in the soup if you prefer it this way.
- After your soup has simmered for at least 30 minutes, taste and add paprika, cayenne, black pepper, cumin, coriander, cloves and salt if necessary. I use whole spices so usually grind my cumin, coriander and black pepper fresh. You can adjust the thickness of the soup by adding more water or letting it cook down. Simmer for 15 more minutes.
Combine and serve
- Add sautéed mushrooms to soup and simmer for just about 10 minutes and serve.
- Add your rice balls and tofu to a bowl and pour desired serving of soup with mushroom into the bowl. Add boiled okra and enjoy.
To Make Rice Balls
- This ratio of rice to water is for stove top cooking, in a rice cooker, reduce water by about 1/2 cup. Rinse the rice to remove excess starch. You want the water to be just over 1/2 inch on top of your rice.
- Place the rice, salt and water in a pot with a lid and bring to a boil.
- Turn down the heat, cover rice and allow the water to absorb into rice. There is more water in this recipe than when making rice normally, this is to make it easier to mash rice together. This will take anywhere from 15-30 minutes depending on the size of the pot.
- If you find rice too sticky, remove the lid and turn the heat down so some moisture evaporates.
- Using a sturdy wooden spoon mash and knead the rice against the side of your pot.
- Wet a bowl slightly with water and scoop rice into the bowl.
- Shaking the bowl in a circular motion (swirling it around) you will be able to form your rice into a ball. You may use clean hands to help you form into a perfect ball
- Serve with groundnut soup or wrap in plastic wrap until ready to eat.
- To reheat rice balls you may remove plastic wrap and place in the microwave, alternatively you may place in boiling water with plastic wrap on to reheat, but ensure that water does not penetrate the plastic excessively or this will make the rice soggy.ecipe is also vegan friendly but I have
