Caldo de Mancarra (Peanut Stew)

Name: Caldo de Mancarra (Peanut Stew)
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 55 min
Total time: 75 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Guinea-Bissau
Ingredients: 2 lbs chicken or beef, cut into pieces; 1 cup natural peanut butter; 1 onion, chopped; 2 tomatoes, chopped; 1 scotch bonnet pepper, whole; 2 carrots, sliced; 4 cups water or stock; 2 tbsp palm oil

6 servings20 min prep55 min cookMedium Guinea-Bissau

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The Story Behind It

The Tale of Caldo de Mancarra (Peanut Stew)

Story updated September 17, 2026

Caldo de mancarra, Guinea-Bissau's peanut stew, gets its Portuguese-inflected name from 'mancarra,' a regional word for peanut, reflecting the country's Lusophone heritage layered atop a West African groundnut-stew tradition shared with Gambian domoda and Malian tigadègè. It's typically simmered with chicken or fish and served over rice.

Ingredients

Scale:· 6 servings

2 lbs chicken or beef, cut into pieces
1 cup natural peanut butter
1 onion, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 scotch bonnet pepper, whole
2 carrots, sliced
4 cups water or stock
2 tbsp palm oil

Instructions

1Brown the meat with onion in palm oil in a large pot.
2Add tomatoes and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.
3Whisk peanut butter with warm water until smooth and stir into the pot along with remaining water and whole scotch bonnet.
4Simmer covered 30 minutes, then add carrots and cook 20 more minutes.
5Simmer uncovered until the sauce is thick and rich.
6Season with salt and serve hot over rice.

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