South African Main Dish Recipes

"Don't expect a fine dining recipe -- this is rustic, comfort food for the busy cook, which will fill the kitchen with its fragrance as it roasts! I make this dish at least once a week or ten days, and always heave a sigh of relief when I've shoved the entire dinner into the oven in one go and can leave it to cook itself, while I do something more interesting!..."

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Ingredients: cucumbers, Dijon mustard...

"Chicken pie is one of our favourite dinner or festive dishes. Of course, as with all traditional dishes the world over, there are many slight variations, although the spices should be the same as given here. This recipe is about as close to the genuine old-fashioned one as possible, and although seasonings can be varied, subtle nutmeg and clove are..."

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Ingredients: fresh coarse ground black pepper, eggs...

"There are so many old, old ways of cooking, which are on their way to oblivion, a pity. Like this one, some date back to times when there was no refrigeration, and ways had to be found to preserve foods. This is still a beloved dish. It can be found on the canned foods shelf of every supermarket, but the commercial product does not use the "right"..."

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Ingredients: curry powder, oil, onions...

"This distinctive and tasty authentic curry relies heavily on the special blend of spices, known as Cape Malay curry powder. Cape Malay curries are famous for their fruity and full-bodied flavours, making good use of local colourful vegetables or meat and fish, they are not as hot as the curries used in the Indian kitchen. This "secret" recipe..."

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Ingredients: cinnamon sticks, cloves...

"(Recipe edited Sept 2011). Sosaties are not just any old kebabs. They're lamb meat on skewers, but they are marinated in a distinctive aromatic Malay-style sauce. Because lean leg of lamb is the meat of choice, we prefer to also thread a few fattier pork strips on the skewers. Our S A lamb has no smell, or sometimes just a delicious, faint herb aroma..."

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Ingredients: coriander seeds, fat pork...

"A nice warming spicy side."

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Ingredients: cumin seeds, orange lentils...

"This is a traditional South African Samp (mngqusho) and Beans (mbotyi) recipe. My amaXhosa friend, Ntombizanele Sokupa, gave this recipe to our family and we thought it was delicious. Samp is the same thing as hominy, except the kernels are cracked into a few pieces. The samp and beans can be and are commonly soaked overnight, but my friend says it..."

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Ingredients: curry powder, vegetable bouillon cubes...

"Although many people do not like fruit with meat, the flavours in this generous party dish meld very well. It's even better to make it the day before, cool, cover and leave in fridge, then reheat gently in the oven. This is a recipe originating in El Salvador."

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Ingredients: dried basil, dried thyme...

"My adaptation of another of Huey's recipes. He describes a Bridie as "a South African pasty filled with spiced minced lamb... well, kind of..." Minced lamb is what Americans call "ground lamb". As I don't like my foods hot and spicy, when I make these I shall be omitting the sambel oelek (or any other chilli paste) and increasing..."

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Ingredients: lean ground lamb, fresh ground pepper...

"A Potjie is a South African Stew type meal cooked in a large three legged pot over coals. It is often cooked as port of a social gathering in much the same way as BBQs are. These are awesome to have while camping too. Instructions for cooking in a crockpot are included."

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Ingredients: cooking oil, frozen green peas...

"Found this at recipe cottage tweeked of course. I always serve lamb with garlic and saw this and thought how yummy does this sound! Sweet and spicy!"

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Ingredients: cumin seeds, Dijon mustard...