“Unbeknownst to most people, South Africa has its own cuisine, known as Cape cooking. A mixture of Malay, Dutch, French, and German influence, the cuisine has evolved over the last 300 years and focuses on spicy variations of European dishes.”
Seafood
“Seafood is cheap and plentiful in South Africa, and the country is a paradise for seafood addicts. Both shellfish and line fish are easy to get hold of, whether fresh off the boat (if you are on the coast), or in restaurants. Although most shellfish are common, South African specialties are crayfish (clawless lobster) and perlamon, or abalone (mother of pearl). Distinctively South African line fish are kingclip, snoek, red roman, cob or snapper.”
We hear that kingclip is a very nice fish but very expensive. We have discovered the fish hake and are really enjoying this mild white fish.
Venison and Game
“Ostrich meat is served in almost every Cape and Little Karoo restaurant, as are guinea-fowl (a much tastier bird than chicken). For venison, the smaller antelope, whose meat is tender and aromatic from browsing on veld herbs: springbok, dulker and, reedbuck are the best. Some of the larger antelope provide good meat if hung: kudu and gemsbok steaks in a wild mushroom or fruit sauce is often on restaurant menus during the winter months. Delicacies such as crocodile tail (delicious – like a more delicate version of lobster), giraffe (very lean) and occasionally even fried marula grubs can be found at the more expensive city restaurants.”
Ostrich meat is as common as chicken here. It is a locally raised meat therefore it is very inexpensive. Ostrich has no fat content and we find it to be along the lines of our beef but with a sweeter taste to it.
Red Meat: Braais, Karoo mutton and poitjies
“Beef and mutton are the staples of most white South African diets, many visitors are taken aback by the level of red meat consumption. The braaivleis, shortened to braai, is a weekly ritual among many white South Africans – a barbeque in which quantities of meat, sausage and beef are consumed, along with a few token vegetables like baked squash and aubergine.
Kuroo mutton is said to have a very distinct flavor that comes from the succulent semi-desert plants and herbs on which the sheep feed. Karoo mutton has very little fat and is more tender than European lamb. A variation on the braaivleis is the poitjiekos (pronounced poikykos), a Boer traditional feast in which meat, beans, squash and whatever else the cook wants are layered in a black cast iron cooking pot (the poijie) covered in water and left to cook over several hours until the water has boiled away and all the levels have been cooked. The concentration of flavours is mouth watering.”
I mentioned us having the poitjiekos at Roxanne’s birthday celebration. It truly is a delicious meal. We’ve also found that lamb is a very popular red meat. It’s typically eaten within a stew and can be quite nice this way. It’s still not my favorite but it’s growing on me.
Biltong and Boerevors
“South Africa’s wild dried meats, or biltong, looking highly inedible, coming in blackened strips that resemble an odd hybrid of leather and wood (unless you buy it ready-shredded in a supermarket). But the tough outside usually belies a moist, often still red inside that remains juicy for months. Biltong can be made from most meats, but the best is undoubtedly from game, especially kudu and springbok. The only problem with biltong is that it can be expensive – a tragedy, as the stuff is supremely moreish. The ones with black peppercorns are especially nice.
Biltong and Boerevors
“South Africa’s wild dried meats, or biltong, looking highly inedible, coming in blackened strips that resemble an odd hybrid of leather and wood (unless you buy it ready-shredded in a supermarket). But the tough outside usually belies a moist, often still red inside that remains juicy for months. Biltong can be made from most meats, but the best is undoubtedly from game, especially kudu and springbok. The only problem with biltong is that it can be expensive – a tragedy, as the stuff is supremely moreish. The ones with black peppercorns are especially nice.
Less universally loved is the long, coiled boerevors sausage. The quality of this general – purpose protein can vary from the sublime to the inedible. Many butchers stuff the meat with African veld herbs. Some boerevors is made with a thin strip of cheese through the center, which melts with cooking and adds a richer quality to the meat.”
By: Cadogan Guides
Stephen and I were fortunate enough to try the biltong a few weeks ago at an African collectables store. We got to talking with the owner who we found out was a Christian and she offered us to try some of her choice dried meats. We tried kudu which is quite nice and springbok, which personally I found entirely too gamey.
Boerevors sausage is the meat that we cooked up for the students at our braai.
