Cooking Sierra Leonean Stew Like a Busy Mom

Listen, being a working mom means I don’t have six uninterrupted hours to fry down peppers and stir pots like my aunties used to. But I also don’t believe in sacrificing the rich, bold flavors that make Sierra Leonean food so special. ✨ Today we’re talking about one of the cornerstones of Sierra Leonean cuisine: classic Sierra Leonean stew with beef and chicken.

This dish is the base of so many meals—served with rice, plantains, or bread. The secret is in the pepper mix frying down slowly until it’s rich, glossy, and flavorful. But if you’re juggling work, school pickups, and dinner, “slowly” isn’t always realistic. So let me share my working mom hacks that keep the authentic taste without chaining me to the stove all night.

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The Heart of Sierra Leonean Stew

If you’ve ever stepped into a West African kitchen, you already know: stew is not just food, it’s love in a pot.
At its core, the Sierra Leonean version uses:

• A pepper base (tomatoes, onions, bell peppers)
• Generous oil (this is not the time to be stingy)
• Layers of protein (beef, chicken, fish—take your pick)

The magic comes from frying down that pepper mix until the raw tomato taste disappears and you’re left with a rich, deep sauce. That step, my friends, is time-consuming. But that’s where my hacks come in. 👇🏾

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My Busy Mom Hacks for Authentic Stew

1. Use Frozen Bell Pepper Mix
   Save yourself the chopping marathon. Frozen bell pepper/onion blends from the store work just as well and cut your prep time in half.
2. Don’t Be Shy With Oil
   Proper frying requires enough oil to move things along quickly. Yes, you’ll skim off the extra later, but in the meantime, it helps you get that rich, glossy stew without hours of waiting.
3. Pre-Cooked, Frozen Proteins
   This is my game-changer. I’ll boil my beef and chicken in bulk, freeze them in portions, and then just drop them into the stew when I need them. That way, I can focus on the pepper base instead of babysitting meat.

With these shortcuts, your stew still sings with all the flavors of home—just with less sweat on your brow.

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Quick Sierra Leonean Stew Recipe (Beef + Chicken)

@sparkedbyamie

Cooking up a taste of Sierra Leone 🇸🇱✨ Today we’re making classic Sierra Leonean stew with beef + chicken 🥘🔥 This stew takes time to fry down properly, but here are my working mom hacks: use frozen bell pepper mixes to save chopping time, don’t be shy with your oil (it speeds up frying), and use pre-cooked, previously frozen proteins so all you have to focus on is blending your pepper mix and cooking everything down to perfection. The rich, authentic flavor still comes through without being stuck in the kitchen all day 🙌🏾 Stay tuned—I’ll be sharing the full recipe on the blog this week! Www.anxiousafricanmom.com #SierraLeoneFood #fyp #momsoftiktok

♬ original sound – hawaforay2

Ingredients for vibes:

• 2 lbs beef (cut to your desired size & pre-cooked)
• 2 lbs chicken (pre-cooked)
• 3 large bags frozen bell pepper mix (adjust based on the amount you want to make)
• 2-3 medium tomatoes (or 2 cans of diced tomatoes)
• 1–2 Scotch bonnet peppers (adjust for spice)
• 1-3 cups vegetable oil (you can skim off excess later)
• Beef Maggi or Knorr seasoning to your taste
• 2 tsp thyme
• 2-3 Bay Leaves
• Salt to taste

Instructions:

1. Blend tomatoes, peppers, and half the onions into a choppy pepper mix (we want to see all the beautiful colors of the peppers).
2. Heat oil in a large pot.
3. Slowly add the pepper mix to the pot and fry on medium-high heat, stirring often.
4. Season with beef seasoning, bay leaves, and thyme.
5. Cook until the oil separates to the top and the color begins to change from red to a deep brown-ish red color.
6. Add pre-cooked beef and chicken. Stir well to coat in the stew.
7. Simmer on lower heat until all the flavors come together and your stew is the perfect .
8. Adjust seasoning by adding salt at this time if needed, skim off excess oil, and serve hot with rice or fried ripe plantains(my personal fave and forever cheat meal).

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Serving Suggestions

• With white rice: The classic combo, perfect for Sunday dinner.
• With fried plantains: Sweet + savory = happiness.
• With fresh bread: For those days when you want to scoop up sauce and skip the fork altogether.

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Final Thoughts

Cooking Sierra Leonean food as a first-gen mom in the U.S. can feel overwhelming sometimes. We want to honor tradition and keep up with our modern lives. The good news? You don’t have to choose. With a few hacks, you can still bring the flavors of home to your table—without missing bedtime stories or falling asleep at the stove.

Bookmark this quick Sierra Leonean stew recipe for your next weeknight meal—and let me know if your kids lick their plates clean like mine do.

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