Chicken Mafe
- Total Time
- 1 hour 45 minutes, plus marinating time
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 12cloves garlic
- 11-inch piece of ginger, peeled
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- Crushed red-pepper flakes
- 2pounds bone-in chicken, skin removed
- 6tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1medium onion, diced
- 3tablespoons fish sauce
- 6ounces tomato paste
- 1cup creamy unsweetened peanut butter
- ½pound green cabbage, cut into 2-inch wedges
- 3medium carrots, peeled, cut in 2-inch lengths
- 1medium sweet potato
- 12ounces waxy potatoes, like Yukon Gold
- Scotch Bonnet chile slices, to taste (optional)
- White rice, cooked, for serving
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)
881 calories; 45 grams fat; 9 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 23 grams monounsaturated fat; 10 grams polyunsaturated fat; 87 grams carbohydrates; 12 grams dietary fiber; 12 grams sugars; 38 grams protein; 1451 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Finely mince 6 cloves garlic and the ginger with a pinch of salt, plenty of black pepper and crushed red-pepper flakes to taste. Season chicken all over with salt, and rub with the garlic mixture. Marinate for three hours or overnight, refrigerated.
- Step 2
Finely chop the remaining 6 cloves of garlic. In a large Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-high heat. When it is hot, add the onion, chopped garlic, 2 teaspoons kosher salt and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes, until the onion is starting to become translucent. Stir in the fish sauce, then the tomato paste, and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes, until the paste and onions have combined and are a shade darker. Stir in 6 cups water, scraping up any browned bits.
- Step 3
Add the chicken, bring to a boil and turn heat down to a moderate simmer. In a mixing bowl, stir a cup of the cooking liquid into the peanut butter, a splash at a time, to loosen it. Pour the peanut butter mixture into the pot, and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the cabbage and carrots, and simmer 10 minutes. Peel and cut the sweet potato and waxy potatoes into 1½-inch chunks, add them and simmer 30 minutes, until the vegetables and chicken are tender and the sauce is like a very thick gravy. (The oil will be separating in the sauce.) If the chicken and vegetables are tender but the sauce is still a little loose, remove them, and let the sauce cook down. Add the chile if using. Taste, adjust seasoning with salt and serve over white rice.
Private Notes
Comments
Colonialism didn't bring Vietnamese fish sauce to the kitchens of Senegal. The depth of flavor in authentic mafe comes from small amounts of potent smoked dried fish. It is the je ne sais quois of mafe, just as fish sauce provides the je ne sais quoi of many southeast Asian dishes. In this recipe fish sauce is a convenient substitution for dried fish, and that's why is should be added.
Uuy. And that's not even counting a healthy serving of white rice to soak up the sauce. I learned how to make a version of this from a Gambian friend in high school and he used much less oil (maybe 2-3 T.) and peanut butter (about 1/2 cup for a 3 to 3-1/2 pound chicken). Still very tasty.I love this dish but if you don't want to use up your entire daily calorie allowance in a single meal, I think you can reduce the high-calorie ingredients without suffering much loss of taste.
I used to live in Senegal and have made this many times. A few of suggestions: 1.) ditch the cabbage and add eggplant instead. Throw it in early so it’s browned and a little mushy. Cube it and salt it beforehand to get rid of the bitterness. 2.) Powdered PB works great and mixes well. Good for controlling how much peanut flavor you receive. 3.) Ditch the tomato paste and blend up some sun-dried tomatoes. Better flavor. This was my fav dish living in the village. Enjoy!
This felt like Agador Spartacus’s Sweet and Sour Peasant soup. Really was not a fan, although my family said it wasn’t so bad. Followed recipe closely. I felt it desperately needed acid. Very one note. Perhaps using fresh tomatoes and using less peanut would have brightened it up. Tomato paste just added to the heavy blandness
This one was a winner; made my apartment smell great and was a convenient outlet for some of the veggies I had from my local CSA. I substituted some rutabaga for the sweet potato and some red cabbage for the green, everything came out great. Some commenters here don't seem thrilled about how calorically dense and rich in protein this recipe is - for me, on a cold winter day resting from lifting, it was ideal and very nourishing. Just be aware this recipe makes a LOT of food, so use a big pot.
The spices are wrong. You need the traditional Ghanian/Ivorian spice mix for this dish.
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