Poulet Mafé - Senegalese Chicken & Peanut Stew

Mafé or maafe, a peanut stew with just the right amount of heat, known throughout West Africa, originated in the Senegambia region. It features a rich, velvet-smooth gravy made from ground peanuts or unsweetened peanut butter and tomatoes, loaded with tender meat and/or vegetables, and served over rice or couscous. While lamb and beef provide a traditional, deeply flavourful broth, other variations like chicken, seafood and tofu pairs brilliantly with the sauce too. You can also make this with just root vegetables, like pumpkins, cassava, carrots, sweet potatoes, and turnips. Original recipe from Senegalese chef Pierre Thiam via Food & Wine calls for a mixture of root vegetables and cabbage, I just used cauliflowers to make it low-carb friendly. However, the stew is highly customizable, use other vegetables and protein you personally enjoy.


3 Medium garlic cloves, finely chopped 1 tbsp Fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped Sea salt and freshly milled black pepper 1-1.2 kg Bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs 3 tbsp Chicken schmaltz (or oil) 1 Medium yellow onion, chopped 150 g Tomato paste 60 ml Fish sauce 1 tsp Cayenne pepper 1l Chicken broth or water 200 g Unsweetened creamy peanut butter, well stirred 1 Small head of cauliflowers, cut into even florets Chopped parsley, to garnish

3 Medium garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tbsp Fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
Sea salt and freshly milled black pepper
1-1.2 kg Bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
3 tbsp Chicken schmaltz (or oil)
1 Medium yellow onion, chopped
150 g Tomato paste
60 ml Fish sauce
1 tsp Cayenne pepper
1l Chicken broth or water
200 g Unsweetened creamy peanut butter, well stirred
1 Small head of cauliflowers, cut into even florets
Chopped parsley, to garnish

Mix together garlic, ginger, salt, and black pepper in a large bowl. Add chicken and press garlic mixture into chicken pieces. Cover with plastic wrap and let marinate for at least 3 hours or up to 12 hours.
Heat chicken schmaltz in a large Dutch oven over medium-high until hot. Add onion and cook, stirring often, until onion starts to become translucent, about 3 minutes. Stir in tomato paste, fish sauce and cayenne pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, until combined and tomato paste caramelizes and turns a few shades darker, 6 to 8 minutes.
Add chicken stock or water, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of Dutch oven. Add chicken and any remaining garlic mixture in bowl to Dutch oven. Bring to a boil over high. Reduce heat to medium-low.
Place peanut butter in a medium-size heatproof bowl. Stir in some liquid from Dutch oven until peanut butter is thinned out and mixture is creamy. Add to mixture in Dutch oven and bring to a vigorous simmer over medium-low for 45 minutes, adding in cauliflower florets for the last 10 minutes, until chicken and cauliflowers are tender and oil has separated from thickened sauce. Season with salt to taste. Garnish with chopped parsley.

32 comments:

Tandy (Lavender and Lime) 4/7/26 06:41: Sounds delicious and the perfect use for my peanut butter powder!
Ruby Rose and the Big Little Angels 3 4/7/26 08:18: Nothing says happy Fourth of July like Senegalese soup.
DEZMOND 4/7/26 10:05: Paprika stew is a staple in my Vojvodina.
DEZMOND 4/7/26 10:06: Angie is not American, why would she celebrate Fourth of July?
MELODY JACOB 4/7/26 10:46: I like how the marinade with garlic and ginger builds flavor early, then the slow simmer brings everything together into a thick, layered sauce.
Tom 4/7/26 12:21: ...all around the world people enjoy chicken!
Margaret D 4/7/26 12:29: Oh that sounds a lovely dish, Angie. I do like peanuts and peanut better once in awhile.
Brian's Home Blog 4/7/26 15:24: That is a beautiful dish and it looks delicious!
Mimi Rippee 4/7/26 17:40: Oh my the sauce sounds delicious!!!
JUdee 4/7/26 21:35: You make some interesting recipes. I. don't eat chicken, but it looks really good.
Linda's Relaxing Lair 4/7/26 22:54: Dear Angie, the presentations are gorgeous, dear friend!
Lowcarb team member 5/7/26 00:14: Looks a delicious dish.

All the best Jan
Cooking Julia 5/7/26 00:15: I know this recipe, it is so good!
J.P. Alexander 5/7/26 00:48: Gracias por la receta. Te mando un beso.
David M. Gascoigne, 5/7/26 13:26: Brings back fond memories of times past in West Africa.
Federica Simoni 5/7/26 14:23: wow sembra buonissimo!
My name is Erika. 5/7/26 15:06: I've made something similar this this before, and it was tasty. I don't remember adding cauliflower though, and that sounds like a super addition.
Rainbow Evening 5/7/26 15:50: love garlic and ginger as flavor.....yummy
🇺🇸Baking with Nessa🇺🇸 5/7/26 16:12: Alright, this is it: As soon as we are back from our road trip in Canada, I am making Poulet Mafé. I grew-up in Senegal and I absolutely loved living there. This chicken recipe is total comfort food for me and I had forgotten about it. Thank you for the memories it brought back. ~Nessa
Basil and The B Team ~ BionicBasil ® 5/7/26 16:33: Amazing dish... guess where I'm headed? The kitchen!!! LOL Happy Sunday and thanks so much for another fabulous recipe! 🍽️🎈🎉✨
Anonymous 5/7/26 20:16: Looks delicious.
Happy 4th of July.
DeniseinVA 5/7/26 22:28: Looks wonderful Angie, I am always very interested in cuisines from other countries.
Guillaume 5/7/26 23:37: I love chicken, I love peanuts, so...
Ben | Havocinthekitchen 6/7/26 02:10: I'm not familiar with this dish, Angie, but it looks wonderful! The peanut sauce sounds rich and delicious.
Balvinder 6/7/26 05:03: It looks incredibly comforting and full of flavor.
Lori 6/7/26 18:00: Another beautiful dish of yours Angie!! I have tried this with lamb that a friend made for us, and it was delicious. I can see where chicken would work very well also.
Hena Tayeb 7/7/26 00:18: Oh wow.. that looks really good.
The-FoodTrotter 7/7/26 21:28: since there is a large Senegalese diaspora in France, poulet mafé is a must in and I'm quite used to this name but to be frank I must have tried this dish only once! Your recipe looks sensational as always :)
Cocoa and Lavender 8/7/26 18:56: My former nephew-in-law is from Senegal and spoke fondly of this dish. I definitely love the African ground nut stews, and I am sure I will love this one. ~ David
2pots2cook 9/7/26 10:18: Chicken loaded with vegetables and peanuts must be heaven. Thank you for this beauty!!!!!
Frank | Memorie di Angelina 10/7/26 17:07: This look so good, Angie! I've had something similar while in Sierra Leone on business once. so I know i'd enjoy this combination of flavors.
tigerfish 15/7/26 00:02: Recently made a chicken dish with peanutty gravy/sauce, definitely not Senegalese, but more "Satay-inspired"...