What makes a truly South African Dish?
With the array of cultures and history in our country it’s hard to pin-point exactly what is a solely South African Meal.
We have been affected by so many influences from the Dutch, Malay and of course of our people to create a cuisine that is truly unique to our country.
Below is a list of 8 Authentic meals you must try when visiting South Africa.
Bunny Chow
What it is: A hollowed-out loaf of bread filled with curry.
More About The Bunny Chow that has nothing to do with Rabbits: SA’s answer to the bread bowl (watch your back, Panera), this dish originated in the Durban Indian community during the time of apartheid. People of color were barred from certain restaurants and cafes, so they began ordering take-out meals from the sides or backdoors of these eateries. Roti, a popular dish at the time, was difficult to eat and fell apart easily, so Indian restaurant owners started using loaves of bread as take-out containers for curries. There’s no actual bunny in the chow, which is typically made with chicken, lamb, vegetables, or mutton and is lightly spiced. The name is just a take on the word ‘Bania’, an Indian merchant caste that peddled the curries. Oh, and you don’t use utensils to eat it, but forks are overrated anyways.
Biltong
What it is: Cured, salted, and dried beef tenderloin or Game
“Bill-tong”: An Afrikaner (the white population from Dutch origin) contribution, this cured meat is most often made from beef, but other gamey offerings like venison, ostrich, and springbok are frequently used as well. It can be dried in cold air, wooden boxes, or climate-controlled rooms. Though quite similar to jerky, it’s generally thicker and less sweet, as primary ingredients include vinegar and coriander. It’s basically the cool foreign cousin that jerky wants to be when it grows up.
Bobotie
What is it: Mildy spiced mincemeat (ground beef) baked with an egg-custard topping and toasted almonds.
Something ’bout Bobotie: Typically a dinner favourite, this is a hybrid Indonesia and Cape Malay dish: the curry flavors are from the Malaysian immigrants of the 17 and 1800s, and the name is Afrikaans. All the Malaysian-influenced herbs and spices make for a seriously unique flavour profile.
Make Bobotie at home with our Easy Bobotie Recipe.
Samoosas
What they are: Curried potato & pea-filled crunchy pastry triangles served with mango atchar and chutney.
Say Sa-Moo-Sa: Gandhi started his work in South Africa prior to leaving for India. Immigrant Indians are a major part of the South African fabric, with the largest population residing in the coastal city of Durban. Samoosas are ubiquitous in the SA street-food game, and often include meat as an ingredient. As they should.
Malva Pudding
What it is: A sweet pudding made with apricot jam, served hot and often with vanilla custard.
Malva Pudding Explained: Of Afrikaner origin, malva means ‘mauve’ and the dessert has a spongy, bread pudding-like texture. In December 2006, Oprah’s personal chef visited South Africa to cook Christmas dinner (including malva!) for the students at the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls. The students presumably ate the malva in the Dr. Phil Memorial Cafeteria.
Pap & Boerewors
What it is: SA beef tenderloin sausage (boerewors) with traditional corn meal polenta (pap).
Pap and What?: A good example of the cross-pollination often found in South African cuisine, the name is Afrikaans, though pap is a classic African dish eaten by almost every group in the country, with each putting their own twist on it. ‘Wors’ means sausage, and boerewors is a must-have at any ‘braai’ — Afrikaans for ‘barbeque’ — in fact, braais in general are must-haves, since they are a serious cultural and social institution.
Mozambican Prawns Peri-Peri
What are Peri-Peri Prawns: Pan-seared or grilled prawns (shrimp) cooked in peri-peri sauce.
What’s the deal: Killer seafood is “almost a birthright” in SA, where close to all of it is locally sourced. The country boasts a number of coastal cities with local fishing industries, and the freshness shows. The prawns are caught off the Mozambican coast (a shared coastline along the Indian Ocean) and prepared using peri-peri, a quintessential Portuguese spice and huge contributor to SA’s cuisine canon. Nando’s is one of the country’s most popular fast-food chains, a restaurant that’s built their business on peri-peri chicken (chicken livers peri-peri are the main image of this guide!) — even opening up shops in DC and London.
‘Amagwinya’ or Vetkoek
What it is: Deep-fried sourdough filled with savoury mince & chutney.
What’s the deal: The people of mixed race who predominantly populate the Western Cape are adept at adapting other cultures’ cuisines, like this dish, which bears an Afrikaans name. Vetkoek, which literally translates to ‘fat cake’ (our favourite kind!), lives up to its name, being deep-fried and full of Cape Malay-inspired seasoned ground beef. It’s supposedly a miracle hangover cure, too.
If we have left out any of your favourite South African meals be sure to leave us a comment below.
If you’re a visitor and have tried some of our suggestions we would love to know what you think so leave us your experience down below as well.
