African Groundnut Stew

I don't know why or how it got it's name. I don't even know what African food is supposed to taste like - all I know is that this is yummy - it just happens to have a funny name.

African Groundnut Stew

• 2 T veg oil
• 3 cloves garlic - minced
• 1 cup rice
• 8 cups veg broth
• 1 can chickpeas - drained
• 1 cup diced zucchini
• 1 onion - diced
• 2 sweet potatoes - peeled and cubed (1 inch)
• 1/3 cup peanut butter (the 'groundnut' part of the recipe title)
• 3 cups salsa (or just one of the big jars) I use think and chunky
• 1 t thyme
• 1/2 t cumin

-- In a LARGE pot: saute onion, garlic and sweet potatoes until all tender.
--Add the rice and broth. Boil and reduce heat. Cover and simmer 30 minutes.
--Add all remaining ingredients and cook over low until the zucchini is soft.
-- Serve with crusty bread and enjoy!!

MY SHORTCUTS:
So I've made this the way it says, and one time our stove broke, but I didn't know it until all these things had been chopped and such, so this is what I did and it turned out great!

Cook the rice separately using 2 cups of the broth. Microwave the onion, garlic and sweet potatoes about 8 or 9 minutes. In crockpot, combine everything and cook until hot. Yes. It's that easy. I made this last week and I did it just like this, except our stove was working, so I put it in a pot instead of the corckpot, but I still cooked the rice separately and used the microwave. It cuts the time down to about half when you can have the rice cooking as your chopping and microwaving. I'm never going back! haha Enjoy.