African Peanut, Chickpea, and Sweet Potato Soup

This African-inspired vegan peanut, chickpea, and sweet potato soup is thick, hearty, and nourishing, with lots of vegetables and spices that will warm you right up! 

My parents have had a soup cookbook, titled Soup For All Seasons by Nava Atlas since the early 1990s. It isn’t much to look at: It’s a small, softcover book, without a single photo within its pages. And yet, as is so often the case, its humble appearance is deceiving. The phenomenal recipes within have become some of my favourites over the years, and I credit this book for developing my deep love of soup over the years. 🙂 

I’ve always been a big fan of peanut butter in savoury dishes from every corner of the globe, and this African-inspired peanut butter, chickpea, and sweet potato soup is no exception. With an ample amount of peanut butter, this soup is rich and luxurious. It’s packed with healthy fat, protein, beta carotene, and lots of spice to stoke your digestive fire! It doesn’t take very long to make, and relies heavily on pantry staples such as peanut butter, chickpeas, and sweet potatoes. All in all, this soup can definitely hold its own as a weeknight meal when served with some flatbread or a scoop of cooked brown rice right in each bowl of soup. 

INGREDIENTS YOU’LL NEED

• Quality cooking oil of choice (coconut, extra virgin olive, avocado, or ghee), onion, garlic, ginger, red pepper, sea salt, freshly ground black pepper, ground coriander, chili flakes or cayenne, sweet potatoes, diced tomatoes, chickpeas, peanut butter, vegetable broth, collards or kale, coconut sugar or maple syrup (just a tiny bit to balance the flavour), lime juice, and cilantro. 

STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS

1. Warm the oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and lightly browned, 5 minutes. Add the red bell pepper, sea salt, pepper, coriander, and chili flakes or cayenne. Cook a few minutes more to soften the red bell pepper and brown the spices. 
2. Next, add the diced sweet potatoes, diced tomatoes, 2 cups of the broth, and the chickpeas. Simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sweet potato is tender. 
3. Whisk the peanut butter with the remaining 1 cup of broth in a bowl until smooth. Stir this into the soup. At this point, add more broth if the soup is too thick for your liking. 
4. Finally, stir in the collards or kale and coconut sugar. Cook for a couple of minutes, until the collards or kale are bright green. 
5. Right before serving, mix in the lime juice. Ladle the soup into bowls and top with fresh cilantro and additional lime juice, if desired. 

MORE DELICIOUS AND HEALTHY SOUP RECIPES 

• Southwestern White Bean, Quinoa, and Sweet Potato Soup
• Cauliflower, Turmeric, and Potato Soup
• Curried Carrot, Lentil, and Coconut Soup

I hope that you love this African peanut, chickpea, and sweet potato soup! If you make it, let me know how you enjoyed it by leaving a comment and rating below. And if you post a photo to Instagram, tag it @upbeet.kitchen and #upbeetkitchen- I love seeing what you’ve made. 🙂 

Enjoy! 

African Peanut, Chickpea, and Sweet Potato Soup

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5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 2 reviews

• Author: Allison
• Total Time: 45 minutes
• Yield: 6 servings 1x
• Diet: Vegan

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Description

This African-inspired peanut chickpea, and sweet potato soup is thick, hearty, and nourishing. It has that stick-to-your-ribs quality that we all crave at this cold, dark time of the year!

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 2 tablespoons olive oil (or avocado or coconut oil, or ghee)
• 2 medium yellow onions, diced
• 4 medium garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons minced or grated ginger
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• ¼ teaspoon chili flakes
• 4 cups peeled and diced sweet potato (from about 2 medium)
• 1 28-oz can diced tomatoes
• 3 cups cooked chickpeas (or 2 14-oz cans, drained and rinsed)
• ⅔ cup smooth peanut butter
• 3 cups vegetable broth, divided, plus more as needed
• 1 bunch kale or collards, chopped (about 4 packed cups)
• 1 teaspoon coconut sugar
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
• Cilantro, for garnish

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Instructions

1. Warm the oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and lightly browned, 5 minutes. Add the red bell pepper, sea salt, pepper, coriander, and chili flakes or cayenne. Cook a few minutes more to soften the red bell pepper and brown the spices.
2. Next, add the diced sweet potatoes, diced tomatoes, 2 cups of the broth, and the chickpeas. Simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sweet potato is tender.
3. Whisk the peanut butter with the remaining 1 cup of broth in a bowl until smooth. Stir this into the soup. At this point, add more broth if the soup is too thick for your liking.
4. Finally, stir in the collards or kale and coconut sugar. Cook for a couple of minutes, until the collards or kale are bright green.
5. Right before serving, mix in the lime juice. Ladle the soup into bowls and top with fresh cilantro and additional lime juice, if desired.

Notes

This recipe makes a thick soup, but you can add more broth to achieve your desired consistency!

Serve over cooked brown rice if you’d like an even heartier dish. Sometimes I serve it with homemade cornbread, too!

• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 30 minutes
• Category: Soup, Supper, Lunch
• Cuisine: African