Tasty South African Dishes

Me on my first day of school in Cape Town

If you read the blog regularly you will probably know that I was born in South Africa to a Welsh mother (SA Father) and Mr A has now been born in Wales to a South Africa mother (Welsh Father) so we have an interesting mix in our house when it comes to childhood memories and the food we eat. I love anything Mediterranean as the South Africa diet at times can be very similar to the greek - we are huge fans and producers of Olives and Feta cheese as well as enjoying light salads, tapas and moussaka in the summer sun.  John on the other hand is a fan of slightly heavier British style food which simply was not that common in South Africa - I mean who would want to eat a Sunday roast when its 30 degrees outside.

I used to live on the slopes of the beautiful table mountain

So when I was recently set a Cricket World Cup foodie challenge by Betfair to put together a yummy dish inspired by one of the 14 countries taking part and I knew straight away I wanted to do something South African. Now had it been spring or summer I would of gone with a traditional braai (bbq) menu but with it being so cold outside and John's love of hearty food I thought I would go with something that is South African inspired but perfect for the British palate as well.

I decided to go with a township traditional vegetarian dish Chakalaka which is as colourful and lively in flavour as the name suggests. For dessert it was a toss up between two childhood favourite's - Melk Tart or Baked Lemon Pudding and decided to go with the comforting lemon pudding which is slight less fussy and more simple but transports me to warm evenings tucking into this with me ice-cream.

Chakalaka

A simple spicy dish consisting of tomatoes, peppers and haricot beans

1 onion chopped
2 cloves of garlic crushed
2tbsp curry powder
1 tspn chilli flakes
1 red pepper chopped
1 yellow pepper chopped
2 carrots pealed and grated
2 tbsp tomato puree
400g can chopped tomatoes
400g haricot beans
Olive oil for cooking

1. Heat Oil and cook onions until translucent
2. Add the garlic and stir
3. Add curry powder and chilli flakes and combine
4. Add peppers and cook for another few minutes
5. Add the carrots and stir making sure everything is coated with the curry powder
6. Pour canned tomatos, tomato puree and haricot beans into the pot
7. Cook for another 10 minutes until everything is soft and the sauce has thickened a bit
8. Serve either hot or cold with rice or bread

Baked Lemon Pudding

Now usually we only bake healthy treats in this household but coming to the end of this pregnancy I felt like something really comforting and this was perfect for that

100gm butter
100g castor sugar
2 large free range eggs - separated
250ml self-raising flour
grated rind and juice of 1 large lemon
500ml milk or diary-free milk

1. Beat butter and sugar until light and creamy
2. Add the egg yolks and beat very well
3. In a separate bowl beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form
4. Fold flour into folk mixture with lemon rind and juice and 250ml milk
5. Fold egg whites in lightly and stir in remaining milk
6. Pour into a well greased oven proof dish and bake at 180 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until well
risen. The pudding should make a crusty top with a creamy lemon custard base

What county would you have picked to do the challenge? Or what is your favourite "world food"?


'I was asked by Betfair to take part in the Cricket World Cup Recipe challenge'