West African Maffe-Style Chicken Stew

Before you start cooking, take your chicken out of the fridge, open the packet and let it air

Rinse your brown rice, add it to a pot with plenty of cold water and bring to the boil over a high heat

Once boiling, reduce the heat to medium and cook for 20-25 min or until it's tender with a slight bite, once cooked, drain, return it to the pot and keep covered until serving

Boil a kettle

Peel and finely slice your red onion[s]

Chop your sweet potato[es] (skins on) into small bite-sized pieces

Chop your tomato[es] finely

Heat a large, wide-based pan (preferably non-stick with a matching lid) with a drizzle of vegetable oil over a medium heat

Once hot, add the sliced onion and chopped sweet potato with a pinch of salt and cook for 4-5 min or until beginning to soften

Once the onion has softened, add the diced chicken thigh to the pan and cook for an initial 5 min

Combine your stock mix and tomato paste with 300ml [450ml] [600ml] boiled water – this is your tomato stock

After 5 min, add the chopped tomatoes and your ras el hanout to the pan and cook for 1-2 min or until fragrant

Once fragrant, add the tomato stock and cook, covered, for a further 6-8 min, or until the sweet potatoes are tender and the chicken is cooked through (no pink meat!)

Meanwhile, chop your coriander finely, including the stalks

Combine your peanut butter with a small splash of boiled water until it's loosened to a paste

Add your flaked almonds to a pestle & mortar and grind (or chop if you don't have a pestle and mortar) to a fine powder

Once the chicken is cooked through, add the peanut butter and half the ground almonds (save the rest for later!) to the pan and stir thoroughly for 1 min or until the sauce has thickened

Remove from the heat and stir through half the chopped coriander (save the rest for garnish!) – this is your maffe-style chicken stew