Thursday, March 3, 2011

African Sizzle

Good evening and welcome to todays blog. We are going to take an adventure down south. No, not Australia, but Africa. This meal is simple and very similar to meatloaf. It's called bobotie. It most likely originated from the Dutch East India Company colonies in Batavia. This dish has become widely popular in Cape Good Hope, South Africa since the 17th century.
Well, we have the honor of making this popular dish today. So, put on your aprons, oven mits, or just grab some bowls and let's get rocking and rolling!

Bobotie

You will need:

  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 2 medium onions, minced
  • 1 1/2 pounds ground beef
  • 1 cup milk
  • 2 slices Texas toast thick-sliced bread
  • 1/2 cup raisins
  • 1 teaspoon apricot jam
  • 1 tablespoon hot chutney
  • 1/2 tablespoon curry powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 1 bay leaf
NOTE: All items can be found at your local market or store

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish.
  2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the onions in the hot oil until soft.
  3. Break the ground beef into the skillet and cook until brown
  4. Place the milk in a shallow dish. Soak the bread in the milk. Squeeze the excess milk from the bread. Set the milk aside.
  5. Add the bread to the beef mixture. Stir in the raisins, apricot jam, chutney, curry powder, salt, and black pepper. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish.
  6. Bake in the preheated oven 1 hour.
  7. While the bobotie bakes, whisk together the reserved milk, egg, and a pinch of salt. Pour over top of the dish.
  8. Lay the bay leaf onto the top of the milk mixture.
  9. Return the bobotie to the oven until the top is golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove bay leaf before serving.





All in all, the total time it takes to make this dish, including prep time and cooking is 1 hour, 55 minutes. It seems like a long time, but the end result will leave your mouth watering and wanting more from this sweet and savory dish. I hope you all enjoy this dish. Have a great night! See you all tomorrow for another adventure!