Mafé
Also: Maafe, Tigadèguèna, Groundnut stew, Peanut stew
A West African stew of meat (lamb or beef) and root vegetables simmered in a thick groundnut (peanut) and tomato sauce.
Identity criteria
- 1Peanut/groundnut paste is the defining body of the sauce
- 2Tomato gives the sauce its color and tang alongside the peanut
- 3Lamb or beef is the classic protein (chicken and fish versions exist)
- 4Root and starchy vegetables (cassava, sweet potato, carrot) stew in the sauce
- 5Thick, rich and served over rice or with fufu
Components
Groundnut (peanut) pasteessentialThe defining thickener and flavor
Root vegetablesoptionalCassava, sweet potato, carrot, cabbage
Lamb or beefessentialClassic meats; chicken/fish are regional alternatives
Onion, garlicoptionalBuild the base
TomatoessentialTomato paste/fresh tomato for color and tang
Chili, stock/bouillon, bayoptionalSeasoning to taste
Technique
- Peanut-sauce simmering
- Slow simmering melds the groundnut paste with tomato and meat into the thick signature sauce
- Skimming the oil
- A layer of peanut oil rising to the top signals a properly cooked, well-emulsified sauce
Form & serving
- Served
- Stew of meat and vegetables in peanut sauce over a starch
- Temperature
- hot
- Portion
- main meal, often communal
- Pairs with
- white rice · fufu · couscous · fonio
Character
Flavour
Texture
thick velvety peanut sauce with tender meat and soft vegetables
Eaten
A beloved everyday and celebratory main across West Africa, served communally over rice or with fufu, valued as filling, protein-rich comfort food.
When
year-round
Variations & related
Regional variations
- Tigadèguèna · Mali
The Bambara name; often considered the dish's birthplace
- Senegalese mafé · Senegal
Commonly with lamb or beef over rice
- Chicken mafé · West Africa
Lighter version using chicken
Related dishes
- sibling West African groundnut soup
Closely related peanut-based stews across the region
- pairs-with White rice
Most common starch served beneath the stew
Substitutions
Lamb → Beef or chickenadmissible
All are accepted protein versions
Peanut paste → Natural peanut butteradmissible
Unsweetened natural peanut butter is a standard substitute
Groundnut paste → No peanut / other nut butterinadmissible
Without groundnut it isn't mafé — the peanut sauce is the identity
Tomato → Omitting tomatoinadmissible
Tomato is integral to the canonical sauce color and balance
Common mistakes
- Using sweetened peanut butter, making the sauce cloying
- Not simmering long enough so the peanut sauce stays raw-tasting and thin
- Skipping tomato, leaving the sauce flat and one-note
- Over-thinning so it becomes a soup rather than a clinging stew
Provenance
A Mandinka/Bambara groundnut stew with roots in Mali, spread across Senegal, Gambia, Guinea and Mauritania and now emblematic of West African cuisine.
Shared by: Mali, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea, Mauritania
References
- 1.West African culinary tradition
- 2.Mandinka/Bambara cooking record
Confidence: high