Bobotie

Italy has Lasagne and Greece has Moussaka, and South Africa has Bobotie. This is a truly delicious spicy, fruity baked ground meat dish that has it's origins in Indonesia. It was introduced to the Cape by the colonists of the Dutch East India Company and later on by the enslaved people of South East Asia whose descendants make up the Cape Malay people of South Africa. It is topped with a custard of milk and egg and baked in the oven. In South Africa it is traditionally served with yellow rice with raisins. This is the dish that South Africans crave the most when they're away from home for a long time.

When I make this dish I normally add my own blend of spices but most people just use curry powder and extra turmeric.

Here is how I make this quintessential South African dish.

INGREDIENTS for 4 people

500 g ground lamb or beef.
1 slice of white bread, crusts removed.
1 cup milk
2 Tablespoons oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 Tablespoon turmeric
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon red chilli flakes
4 cloves garlic chopped
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 handful of raisins
½ cup almond flakes
1 Tablespoon chutney
1 Tablespoon apricot jam
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
2 eggs ( one for the meat mixture and one for the custard)
2 bayleaves

METHOD

Soak the bread in the milk.
In a pot, fry the onions gently until transparent and then add the spices and garlic.
Add the meat and cook for a couple of minutes.
Add the lemon juice & zest, raisins, almond flakes, chutney, apricot jam and  Worcestershire Sauce.
Squeeze the milk out of the softened bread and crumble it into the pot.
Add one of the eggs and mix everything well.
Pack everything into a dish and bake for 30mins in the oven at 180° C.

While it's baking for the first 30 minutes, mix the left over milk together with the other egg to make a light custard. Add a pinch of salt and turmeric.

After 30 minutes, take the dish out of the oven and pour the milk/egg mixture over the meat. Place 2 bayleaves on top and bake for a further 30 minutes.