Gumbo
Naz Deravian
396 ratings with an average rating of 4 out of 5 stars
396
4 hours 15 minutes
Beef Suya
- Total Time
- 30 minutes, plus marinating
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:4 servings (Makes 12 skewers)
- 1½pounds boneless short ribs, sliced lengthwise into ¼-inch-thick strips
- ¼cup peanut oil, plus more for grilling
- 2tablespoons store-bought or homemade ground suya spice blend (see Note), plus more for serving
- 1(2-inch) piece fresh ginger, grated
- 2garlic cloves, grated
- Kosher salt
- 2medium plum tomatoes, sliced into ¼-inch strips, seeds discarded
- 1small red onion, peeled and thinly sliced into rings
- 1lime (optional)
- ¼cup toasted peanuts, chopped
Preparation
- Step 1
Lay several strips of meat on a piece of plastic wrap, leaving about ½ inch between each slice, and top with another piece of plastic wrap. Pound the meat strips with a rolling pin or the bottom of a heavy frying pan until ⅛-inch thick. Repeat this process until all the meat has been flattened. Set aside.
- Step 2
In a medium bowl, combine ¼ cup peanut oil and 2 tablespoons suya spice blend with ginger and garlic. Add beef, toss to coat and season with 2 teaspoons salt. Cover with plastic wrap, and let marinate in the fridge for 4 to 12 hours.
- Step 3
Heat a gas grill or grill pan over medium-high, and brush with peanut oil.
- Step 4
Skewer the beef pieces on 12 individual presoaked wooden or metal skewers, wiping off any excess marinade. Brush the meat generously with more peanut oil and set the skewers on a baking sheet.
- Step 5
Working in batches if necessary, grill the beef skewers until meat is cooked through and lightly charred on both sides, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer the skewers to a platter and sprinkle with more suya spice blend. Repeat until all the beef has been grilled.
- Step 6
Place the tomato and onion slices in a bowl and squeeze lime juice all over. Season with salt and allow to sit for 10 minutes. Strain any excess liquid.
- Step 7
Top skewers with red onion and tomatoes, sprinkle with toasted peanuts, and serve with additional suya spice, for dipping.
Tip
- To make suya spice blend, combine ¼ cup dry roasted peanut powder, 1 tablespoon ground ginger, 2 teaspoons ground cayenne, 2 teaspoons hot paprika, 2 teaspoons onion powder, 1 teaspoon garlic powder and 1 teaspoon fine sea salt. Makes about ½ cup.
Private Notes
Leave a Private Note on this recipe and see it here.
Cooking Notes
Prakash Nadkarni
No - if you have a dry grinder (I use a repurposed coffee grinder), just grind dry roasted peanuts (any supermarket brand, salted or unsalted, is fine). You'll get a semi-paste rather than a powder because of the peanuts' fat content. In South/West India, a similar all-purpose condiment - ground peanuts, chili (cayenne) powder, smashed garlic and tamarind (as souring agent) - is served with idlis (steamed rice-sourdough batter) and unleavened wheat flatbreads (rotis).
Avery
Is peanut powder the same as powdered peanut butter? Can I make my own, or, if not, where can I find it? Thanks!
mkacz
Not sure if this is what the recipe means, but I blitz unsalted roasted peanuts in a spice grinder. It's always worked well!
Prakash Nadkarni
Ground chickpeas (or chickpea flour) is used in recipes for dry chutney in South India.
Ariel B
The suya we had in Oyo State was in chunks, grilled on skewers. It was marinated in its dry spices all day, sometimes not under refrigeration. It's the hottest-spiciest food I've ever loved, and you need white bread and chopped onions just to cut the hotness a little. I don't use the oil when I marinate the beef, which I leave in cubes about an inch on a side.
Diane
Hi! This is more of a cultural/geographical comment. Suya is not a purely Nigerian dish. It is served in many parts of West Africa (although the country I can speak about is Cameroon, especially West Cameroon, closer to Nigeria). There is a town we used to drive through on our way to Dschang: Kekem! The suya was so delicious! (Now there is another newer road and not everyone goes through Kekem any longer.)
Neel
This was DELICIOUS and EASY. Instead of Step 1, I bought Korean-style short ribs which are already cut really thin. Instead of grilling in Step 5, I just put them under the broiler for 6-7 minutes per side. Turned out great. It was my first time having Suya, and I didn't find it too spicy, but it was incredibly flavorful and savory. Will definitely make again.
Aidan
I love suya, and have always made it with peanuts ground really finely. I was wondering, tho, if peanut butter powder would work in a similar way? Would the spice mixture still have the savory flavor added by ground peanuts?
Georgia
I used this seasoning mixture on vegetarian ground meat, impossible meat, and rolled the seasoned meat into very thin strips and cooked in hot oil until crispy. It was delicious!
Sara
This is a note about the peanuts! You can ground your own. I pulse mine in a coffee grinder. You want a ground almond texture (or almond meal/flour). PB2 isn't ideal in my opinion because it's too powdery. Make sure not to blend too long or it will turn into a paste (peanut butter lol). Quick pulses works best. In Africa, they seem to mostly use ground up kuli kuli which is a peanut snack made by grinding down peanuts, removing the oil and baking or frying into a crisp cookie.
Phillip H
Your can by peanut powder under the name PB2. It works great in receipts that call for peanut butter or peanut powder.
Nicky
We made this (beef for my husband, tofu for the rest of the house) to go with the Jollof Rice. I used my coffee grinder to grind the peanuts and it turned into a paste - but no matter, it worked out fine. I wrapped super firm high protein tofu in a kitchen towel and pressed for a half an hour under my heavy dutch oven to remove excess liquid. Marinated both the tofu and beef overnight. I did not wipe off the extra marinade on the tofu before grilling because tofu needs all the flavor. Loved it!
OceanBeachSF
Wow, this was good. Made my own suya and marinated flap steak for about 8 hours. Result was very tender threaded on the skewers. Really unique flavor that was a nice change of pace. Extra spicy too!
Diane
Hi! This is more of a cultural/geographical comment. Suya is not a purely Nigerian dish. It is served in many parts of West Africa (although the country I can speak about is Cameroon, especially West Cameroon, closer to Nigeria). There is a town we used to drive through on our way to Dschang: Kekem! The suya was so delicious! (Now there is another newer road and not everyone goes through Kekem any longer.)
Zaratu
I'm guessing the peanut powder is a stand in for locally used kuli-kuli. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuli-kuli
Silly Sylvia
In Brasil they call the hump Cupim and it is a very much favored peace of meat. Love this recipe.
Ariel B
The suya we had in Oyo State was in chunks, grilled on skewers. It was marinated in its dry spices all day, sometimes not under refrigeration. It's the hottest-spiciest food I've ever loved, and you need white bread and chopped onions just to cut the hotness a little. I don't use the oil when I marinate the beef, which I leave in cubes about an inch on a side.
Diane
In Cameroon, you often buy grilled green plantain to eat with the suya.
drew b
Used a yellow onion and grilled the veggies to cut the raw onion. Probably a crazy person move but served on a toasted brioche bun, would do again.
David
Not exactly the way it’s done in Nigeria. I’ve never seen the original suya marinated for hours in a fridge.
Vee Alvarez
I have a relative with peanut allergy, what can substitute for peanut powder.
Prakash Nadkarni
Ground chickpeas (or chickpea flour) is used in recipes for dry chutney in South India.
Avery
Is peanut powder the same as powdered peanut butter? Can I make my own, or, if not, where can I find it? Thanks!
mkacz
Not sure if this is what the recipe means, but I blitz unsalted roasted peanuts in a spice grinder. It's always worked well!
Steve
Can dry roasted peanuts be ground and used?
Prakash Nadkarni
No - if you have a dry grinder (I use a repurposed coffee grinder), just grind dry roasted peanuts (any supermarket brand, salted or unsalted, is fine). You'll get a semi-paste rather than a powder because of the peanuts' fat content. In South/West India, a similar all-purpose condiment - ground peanuts, chili (cayenne) powder, smashed garlic and tamarind (as souring agent) - is served with idlis (steamed rice-sourdough batter) and unleavened wheat flatbreads (rotis).
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