This tasty South African Bobotie recipe features spiced minced meat infused with curry, turmeric, and a touch of sweetness from chutney or dried fruits. Topped with a creamy egg custard, it’s baked to a golden-brown hue. Served alongside rice and chutney, it offers a delightful mix of sweet, savory, and aromatic spices. Bobotie is a beloved dish in South African cuisine, cherished for its unique and comforting flavors.
Why You’ll Love This South African Bobotie Recipe
You’ll love this dish because it’s full of flavor and has a unique mix of spices, sweetness, and a smooth egg custard topping. It’s also easy to make and looks impressive when you serve it. Plus, you can have fun with all kinds of toppings like almonds, chutney, or bananas!
Ingredient Information and Substitutes
- Bread: Adds softness to the meat mixture. You can use any type of white bread.
- Milk: Used to soak the bread and make the custard. Any milk will work, but whole milk gives the best texture.
- Onions and garlic: These give the dish lots of flavor. You can leave out the garlic if you prefer a milder taste.
- Curry powder: Adds spice to the meat. You can adjust the amount depending on how spicy you like it.
- Chutney and apricot jam: Bring a sweet flavor to the dish. You can use any fruit jam as a substitute for apricot.
- Worcestershire sauce: Adds a tangy flavor. You can use soy sauce if you don’t have Worcestershire sauce.
- Ground beef: The main ingredient. You can also use ground turkey or chicken.
- Sultanas (raisins): Add sweetness. If you don’t have raisins, you can leave them out or use chopped dried fruit.
- Eggs: Used to make the custard topping that goes over the meat.
Cooking Tips and Advice
- Soak the bread: Soak the bread in milk so it blends well with the meat and helps bind everything together.
- Mix well: Stir the meat and spice mixture well so the flavors combine nicely.
- Don’t overcook the custard: When baking, keep an eye on the custard topping so it doesn’t dry out. You can place a pan of water in the oven to keep it moist.
- Experiment with toppings: Try different toppings like coconut, slivered almonds, or even bananas for extra flavor and texture.
How to Serve This South African Bobotie Recipe
Serve your bobotie with rice or couscous, and you can add extra toppings like chutney, coconut, or almonds. It’s delicious on its own, but these toppings give it extra crunch and flavor! You can plate everyone individually, or serve it in the pan for a showstopper of a dinner.
South African Bobotie
Ingredients
- 1 slice crustless bread
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1 1/2 tablespoons oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 onions sliced or chopped
- 2 cloves garlic crushed
- 1 1/2 tablespoons curry powder
- Salt to taste
- 1 1/2 tablespoons chutney
- 1 tablespoon smooth apricot jam
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 1/2 tablespoon vinegar
- 1 pounds ground beef
- 1 1/2 cups sultanas sub raisins
- 3 eggs
- Turmeric
- Bay leaves fresh is best
Instructions
- Soak the bread in milk.
- Heat oil and butter in a large pan and fry the onions and garlic over medium-high heat. When the onions are soft, about 5 minutes, add the curry powder, salt, chutney, jam, Worcester sauce, turmeric, and vinegar. Mix well.
- Drain and mash the bread and reserve the milk. Add the bread to the pan and mix. Add the ground beef and sultanas. Mix well.
- Set the heat to low heat and cook. Stir occasionally until the beef is cooked. Then, remove from the stove.
- Add 1 beaten egg to the meat mixture, mix well, then spoon into a greased 28×16 cm baking dish and level the top. I personally just used the pan I was cooking in. It’s a deep pan with sides that go straight up. You can also use a cast iron pan or dutch oven, to be honest.
- Beat the remaining eggs with reserved milk – you should have about 300 milliliters, or about 1 1/4 cups. Season with salt and turmeric.
- Pour over the meat mixture and put a few of the bay leaves on top. You can make a pattern or just scatter them about. Make sure to also have an oven proof pan of some sort with some water to add humidity in the oven while this dish bakes. You don’t want the custard to dry out. Bake, uncovered for 1 hour at 350F, or until set.
- Serve with rice or couscous, coconut, chutney, slivered almonds, or bananas. Whatever combination of these you’d like! All optional, of course.
Nutrition
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