Georgia Peanuts Inspire the World

Peanuts are the most consumed nut worldwide, and the state of Georgia produces more peanuts of any state. In fact, according to USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Georgia farmers produced more than half of the peanuts in the entire country. Georgia has approximately 4,000 peanut farmers, and peanuts are Georgia’s official state crop. It’s no surprise then that chefs and restaurateurs love cooking with Georgia peanuts any chance they get.

Recently, award-winning celebrity chef, author, and restaurateur Chef Marcus Samuelsson partnered with the National Peanut Board to curate a special, upscale dining experience at Marcus Bar & Grille that was as nutty as it was nostalgic. The Ethiopian-born, Swedish-raised chef, who owns 12 restaurants, has traveled all over the world and found that peanuts are a common denominator across cuisines. You can find traces of high-quality Georgia peanuts at practically all his restaurants, including Marcus Bar & Grille on Edgewood in Atlanta.

I chatted with Samuelsson about this love for Georgia peanuts and why he considers peanuts to be his “secret ingredient.”

Samuelsson’s first memory of cooking with peanuts goes back to when he was just 11 years old. In the kitchen, he and his oldest sister tried creating a version of Ghanian peanut chicken stew. The amateur cooks did not fare well, but the fact that he came to know of another African-inspired dish using peanuts opened his culinary repertoire.

As Samuelsson traveled and explored his global palate, he started noticing the peanut trails across the world. He tasted Senegalese lamb maafe with ground peanuts, West African peanut soup served with rice or fufu, and a Nigerian peanut-based dry spice rub called Suya. In Southeast Asia, he enjoyed Pad Thai noodles with crunchy peanuts, and chicken satay with creamy peanut sauce. He saw that peanut oil is commonly used for cooking in India and that every culture had its own version of peanut brittle. Each cuisine used this ingredient in basic to elaborate presentations, only to create something with more nutrition and flavor. When he came to southeastern U.S., Samuelsson fell in love with the distinctive flavor of boiled peanuts in briny water. Today, he whips up peanut butter with apples or bananas for his own son as an after-school snack.

As a chef, Samuelsson likes to experiment with peanuts in all courses, from peanut old-fashioned cocktails and peanut brittle and banana pudding, to BBQ ribs and fried chicken tossed with peanut butter and honey. He loves the versatility and texture of peanuts, and the fact that the legume is a healthy plant-based protein that can also add creaminess and fat to elevate a vegan dish. He prefers to toast them first, before topping a dish or incorporating in a sauce or stew, for extra smokiness.

The peanut is a small but mighty ingredient, perhaps underestimated in the culinary world. But if you think about your day-to-day lives, you probably eat more peanuts than you realize. From protein bars and airplane snacks to ice cream and peanut butter cookies, peanuts are the ultimate comfort food.

If you want to make your holidays more peanutty, make sure to purchase from local farms and growers listed on the Georgia Peanuts Commission website.