Bobotie

[kirra]

Bobotie
South African Cuisine

Ingredients:

minced lamb or beef, or a mixture of the two butter, vegetable oil
2 onions, chopped
1/2 teaspoon crushed garlic
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
2 slices bread, crumbled
1/4 cup milk
finely grated rind and juice of 1/2 small lemon
1 egg
1 teaspoon salt, milled black pepper
3 ounces dried apricots, chopped
1 Granny Smith apple peeled, cored and chopped
1/4 cup sultanas (golden raisins)
1 1/2 ounces slivered almonds, roasted in a dry frying pan
6 lemon, orange, or bay leaves

Topping:

1 cup milk
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt

Yellow Rice & Blatjang, recipes follow

Preparation:

Set the oven at 160°C (325°F). Butter a large casserole. Heat butter and oil in a saucepan and fry the onion and garlic until translucent. Stir in the curry powder and turmeric, and cook briefly until fragrant. Remove the pot from the heat.

Mix in the minced meat. Mix together the crumbs, milk, lemon rind and juice, egg, salt, pepper, apricots, apple, sultanas (golden raisins) and almonds and mix in. Pile into the casserole and level the top. Roll up the leaves and bury them at regular intervals. Seal with foil and bake for 1 1/4 hours. Increase the oven temperature to 200°C (400°F). Mix together the topping milk, eggs and salt (you may require extra topping if you've used a very large casserole), pour over and bake uncovered for a further 15 minutes until cooked and lightly browned. Serve with Yellow Rice and Blatjang Makes 8 servings.




Yellow Rice

Ingredients:

1 cup rice
1/4 cup seedless raisins
6 whole cloves
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1-2 thin slices green (fresh) ginger
2 1/2 cups cold water
2 tablespoons butter

Preparation:

Combine the rice, raisins, cloves, salt, turmeric, ginger and water in a medium saucepan. Cover and simmer gently until the rice is tender and all the liquid has been absorbed. Add the butter, fluff up with a fork and discard the ginger. Tip into a warm bowl and serve hot.




Blatjang
South African Cuisine

Ingredients:

8 ounces dried apricots, chopped
8 ounces seedless raisins
12 cups grape (wine or cider) vinegar
4 large onions, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 pound brown sugar
6 1/2 ounces flaked almonds
2 tablespoons salt
3 tablespoons ground ginger
2 tablespoons ground coriander
2 tablespoons mustard seeds
2 teaspoons chili powder

Preparation:

Combine the apricots, raisins and vinegar in a 5-litre (5-quart) saucepan. Soak overnight to plump the fruit. Alternatively, if time is tight, simply cover, bring to the boil and set aside for about 2 hours.

Add the remaining ingredients, and cook uncovered over medium heat, stirring occasionally at first, then constantly towards the end of the cooking time, until the chutney has reduced to about one-third, and is beautifully thick. It should take 1 1/2-2 hours. To know when it is ready for bottling, test the consistency by putting a little in the freezer to cool. Pour into hot, sterilized jars, seal and store in a cool, dark cupboard.

Note: Use glass canning jars with screw-top lids for this recipe, and sterilize them by boiling them in water for 10 minutes. For more information on home preserving, click here.