This Slow Cooker Peanut Stew is a hearty dish made with chickpeas, sweet potatoes and peanut butter. It’s also gluten-free and vegan!
Ingredients and substitutions
- Olive oil – or any other neutral cooking oil like avocado, grapeseed or canola oil.
- Garlic – I like using fresh minced garlic, but the jarred variety works as well.
- Yellow onions – white onions would work in a pinch.
- Sweet potatoes – butternut or acorn squash are great alternatives.
- Curry powder – make your own blend using cumin, coriander, chili, turmeric and pepper.
- Cumin – chili powder, paprika or more curry powder are good substitutes here.
- Chili powder – use a combination of paprika, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano and cayenne.
- Vegetable broth – chicken broth is a good non-vegan substitute.
- Peanut butter – try another kind of nut or seed butter like almond butter or tahini.
- Crushed tomatoes – you could try passata (jarred strained tomatoes).
- Chickpeas – lentils or kidney beans would work in a pinch.
- Red pepper – or any other bell pepper of your choice like orange or yellow.
- Spinach – use any type of leafy green like chard or kale.
- Cilantro – parsley would be the next best option but has a different taste.
- Crushed peanuts – leave these out altogether if you don’t like or are allergic to peanuts.
- Basmati rice – use any rice variety of your choice like jasmine or brown rice.
- Salt – to taste.
How to make slow cooker peanut stew
- Add everything but the spinach, cilantro, peanuts and rice to the slow cooker.
- Cook on high for four hours or low for eight hours.
- Stir in the spinach.
- Top with peanuts and cilantro.
- Serve over basmati rice and enjoy!
Stovetop and Instant Pot instructions
Don’t have time to make this vegan African-inspired peanut stew in the slow cooker? You can easily make it on the stovetop or in the Instant Pot! Just follow the instructions below.
Stovetop instructions:
- Heat olive oil in a large pot over med-high heat, then sauté onions, garlic and spices for 2-3 minutes until softened.
- Add the rest of the ingredients to the pot except for spinach, cilantro, peanuts and rice.
- Bring to a boil, then cover with a lid, reduce heat to low and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- When ready to serve, stir in spinach. Top each bowl with peanuts and cilantro and serve with basmati rice.
Instant Pot instructions:
- Dump everything into the Instant Pot in order that it appears listed above except for red pepper, spinach, cilantro, peanuts and rice.
- Cook on high pressure for 2 minutes and then do a quick release of the pressure.
- Remove lid, then stir in red pepper and spinach. Top each bowl with peanuts and serve with basmati rice.
Frequently Asked Questions
This slow cooker peanut stew is inspired by the peanut stews that originated from western African countries like Mali, Ghana, Senegal, Nigeria, Gambia and more.
I like to serve this peanut stew with basmati or jasmine rice, but you could also serve it with quinoa, wild rice, crusty bread, a side salad, soba noodles or rice noodles.
This slow cooker peanut stew is super thick and delicious – but if you accidentally add in too much vegetable broth, you can add a little potato starch, cornstarch or chickpea flour to thicken it up.
Storing and reheating
This peanut stew will last in the fridge for up to 5 days. Store any leftovers in a large container or in individual portion sizes in glass meal prep bowls. To reheat, just stick it in the microwave for 2 to 3 minutes. It’s super easy and the leftovers taste just as good as a fresh serving!
Freezing this recipe
This vegan stew is also freezer-friendly! Freeze individual serving sizes for up to 3 months, then reheat right from frozen in the microwave for 6 to 7 minutes, stirring halfway through. Garnish with fresh cilantro and peanuts and dig in.
More slow cooker recipes
Meal Prep Tools
- Get your Instant Pot here!
- Get your slow cooker here!
- I also love these glass meal prep bowls for reheating this peanut stew in individual portions.
Slow Cooker Peanut Stew {Gluten-Free + Vegan}
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 small yellow onions, diced
- 2 medium-sized sweet potatoes, cubed
- 1 tbsp curry powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 1/3 cup peanut butter
- 1 (796mL) can crushed tomatoes
- 1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 red pepper, chopped
- 2 cups spinach, chopped
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro (for garnish)
- 1/4 cup chopped peanuts
- 3 cups cooked basmati rice (optional side)
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to slow cooker except for spinach, cilantro, peanuts and rice. Cook on high for 4 hours, or low for 8 hours.
- When ready to serve, stir in spinach. Top each bowl with peanuts and cilantro and serve with basmati rice.
- INSTANT POT INSTRUCTIONS: Dump everything into the Instant Pot in order that it appears listed above except for red pepper, spinach, cilantro, peanuts and rice. Cook on high pressure for 2 minutes and then do a quick release of the pressure. Remove lid, then stir in red pepper and spinach. Top each bowl with peanuts and serve with basmati rice.
Comments & Reviews
Heidi says
Made this today and loved it! Altho I misread the directions and thought it was ready after 3 hours on high. It tasted good but the sweet potatoes and red pepper weren’t quite cooked enough. I’ll have a little more in a few more hours. 😆 Oh, also recommend doubling or even tripling the peanut butter! I love that peanut sauce taste.
Taylor Stinson says
Hey Heidi! So happy it worked out for you – I should try adding more peanut butter, that’s a great idea!!! If you ever make the same mistake again with a slow cooker recipe you can always dump everything out into a large pot and bring to a boil then simmer for 10-15 minutes. That should do the trick with veggies not quite cooked through!
Nancy Applegate says
Has anyone cooked this in an Instant Pot (pressure — not the slow cooker function)? I’m new to it, and I’m not sure it’ll work. Thanks!
Taylor Stinson says
Hey Nancy! Unfortunately I’m not sure what to recommend for the Instant Pot as this is a slow cooker recipe. Although Instant Pot would be cool to try!
Daniela says
Hello there, which size of sliw cooker is the recipe for? – sounds quit good and is on my next dinner with fruends list 🙂
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Daniela! So sorry for the late response! My slow cooker is a 4 quart if I remember correctly but I’m sure you could make it in any size. The ingredients definitely won’t overflow!
Heather James says
delicious! became a vegetarian just over a month ago and always looking for something new. this hit the spot!
Taylor Stinson says
Yay!!! I’m so happy to hear that Heather! This is definitely one of my favourites 🙂
Jessica Zambrano says
Making this now, I had sunflower butter on hand so I used that, hoping it does not change the flavor to much.
Super excited you try it!
Taylor Stinson says
Yay!!! Let me know how it goes Jessica 🙂
Janis says
made it today! enjoying it now!! mmmm so so good!
Taylor Stinson says
Yay!!! This is one of my favourites! So happy it turned out for you Janis 🙂
Paige says
I made this for dinner yesterday and I am eating some for lunch right now. It is really delicious. I don’t find many recipes that I would make again, but I will definitely make this one again. Thanks for the recipe!
Taylor Stinson says
YAY!!! I’m so happy to hear that Paige!!! This is definitely one of my favourites as well – I sometimes make it with chicken instead of chickpeas 🙂
laura says
When would you add the chicken if using?
Taylor Stinson says
Hey Laura – add the chicken in at the beginning with the sweet potatoes and spices!
Kristina says
Giving this a try tonight and the little samplings I’ve tasted so far is sooooo goooood. My husband walked in and perked up so me thinks this is a winner 🙂
Taylor Stinson says
Oh I’m so happy to hear that Kristina!!! I usually make a big batch of this for the week and eat it for lunch – I’ve made it a few times before and it never disappoints 🙂
Sarah says
This looks delicious! What kind of curry do you use? Also, have you ever tried using dried chickpeas and just leaving them in for a longer period of time?
Taylor Stinson says
Hey Sarah! I just use plain dried curry powder. And no, I haven’t tried using dried chickpeas! Usually I just have cans of them kicking around the house. You could try that method though if you have experience using dried legumes. I don’t unfortunately so I can’t recommend going that route just because I’m unsure of how it would turn out! Hope that helps 🙂
Danielle says
I saw curry and slow cooker and thought “this recipe is for me.” This looks delicious and so easy to make! Chickpeas and sweet potatoes are wonderful. I can’t wait to give this a try.
Taylor Stinson says
Thank you so much Danielle!!! This really is one of my favourites – let me know if you end up trying it 🙂