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 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.
You can cook this vegan African peanut stew on high for four hours or on low for eight hours. It’s a great hands-off meal option – let it simmer all day before enjoying in the evening. You can also make this peanut stew on the stovetop or in the Instant Pot if you’re looking for a faster cook time.
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 slow cooker 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 African peanut 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.
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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
Nancy says
This was a « I highly recommend this » type of recipe. So easy. 8hrs was perfect and oh so flavorful. I made it with almond butter and roasted almond and cilantro garnish. Party in my mouth 🙂 !!
Jed says
Excellent recipe. I doubled the recipe in a big crock pot and pretty much
stuck to the recipe. Glad I did because the leftovers are great.
Shelby MacEwen says
Was looking for a simple, healthy, and cheap recipe to test out my new slow cooker – perfect recipe, delicious!
I had to do it on high for 5h, might’ve been because I didn’t cube my sweet potatoes small enough.
Thank you!!
Carol says
I made this today in the slow cooker. Came out great. Thank you!
Alex says
This was so delicious! Carnivore boyfriend approved. The instant pot directions were on point. I cant wait to try more of your recipes 🙂
Taylor Stinson says
I’m so happy you guys enjoyed 🙂
Chloé Mitchell says
Can you put all the ingredients In a bag and freeze to cook later?
Taylor Stinson says
I definitely think it’s possible with this recipe for sure!
Marit says
Great recipe, It turned out great! 8 hours on low was perfect for me. I came home form work to a house that smelled amazing! Super fast to prepare, healthy and pretty cheap! I added more of the spices since i love spicy food. And I totally forgot to add the oil, but it was fine. Will make again for sure.
Taylor Stinson says
I’m so happy you enjoyed 🙂 Good to know you can make it without the oil!
Shay says
so you put the cilantro in the slow cooker as well? it says half a cup ( more for garnish ) but the instructions say don’t put cilantro
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Shay – you don’t put it in the slow cooker, it’s a garnish so you add it last when the meal is finished.
Mike says
Hey Taylor like all your recipes this was great tasting and easy to make. I had some roasted chicken left over from a previous meal and added that to my second helping. Really delicious
Taylor Stinson says
So happy you enjoyed 🙂
Catie says
How large are servings would you say? 1 cup?
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Catie – I don’t provide servings by weight/cup unfortunately! You will need to take the number of servings listed and divide into portions. Each portion is a serving.