Nigerian Beef Stew

Step 1

Boil the beef: Place the chunks of beef into a medium pot. Add half of the diced onions, the salt, 2 teaspoons of chicken bouillon powder, half a teaspoon of thyme, and half a teaspoon of curry powder. Stir to combine. Place on medium heat and bring to a simmer. Let the beef cook together with the seasoning for 5 minutes. Add 2 cups of water, cover the pot and let it cook until the beef is tender. Start checking the beef for tenderness after around 15 minutes. Once the beef is done, drain it from its stock. Reserve the stock.

Step 2

Blend the tomato-pepper mixture: Cut the tomatoes into chunks and place them into a blender. Cut and deseed the bell peppers and place them into the blender. Add the chunks of onions and habanero peppers. Blend into a smooth paste or a chunky sauce. A chunky sauce will lend more texture to the stew.

Step 3

Cook down the tomato-pepper mixture: Place the tomato-pepper blend into a medium pot on medium heat. Bring to a simmer and let it cook until most of the liquid evaporates. About 10 minutes. Do not stir while cooking.

Step 4

Fry the beef: Place a large pot on high heat and add the oil. Let the oil heat up then add half of the beef. Let it brown on one side then flip to the other side and let it brown. Remove the beef from the pot and also fry the remaining beef.

Step 5

Cook the stew: Turn the heat down to medium. Add the remaining diced onions to the pot and saute until translucent. Add the tomato paste and cook for five minutes while stirring continuously to prevent burning. Add the reduced tomato-pepper mixture and cook while stirring from time to time for about 15 minutes. Add the remaining curry powder, thyme, and bouillon powder. Then add the stock from cooking the beef and the fried beef. Stir to combine and let everything simmer together for about 5 minutes. It might splatter at this point so cover the pot as needed. Taste to adjust seasoning.

Step 6

Serve. Serve warm over steamed rice.