Bobotie
Comments
Bobotie, often heralded as the national dish of South Africa, consists of baked minced beef or lamb and dried fruit, seasoned with curry powder and cloves, and topped with egg custard. It originated with the Cape Malays---predominately but not exclusively Javanese Muslims---forcibly brought to the Dutch East India Company's Cape Colony and enslaved as laborers and cooks in the 17th century. Indonesian spices permeated minced meat---a protein often preferred by the Dutch---to forge the dish, which is often served with yellow rice, chutney, and sambal, a Malaysian chili paste.
More about the politics of Bobotie from The Politics of Cuisine on Instagram.
Recipe is form here.
Ingredients
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 medium onions, minced
1 ½ pounds ground beef
1 cup milk
2 slices Texas toast thick-sliced bread
½ cup raisins
1 tablespoon hot chutney
½ tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon apricot jam
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 large egg
1 pinch salt
1 bay leaf
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish.
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
Cook onions in hot oil until soft, 2 to 3 minutes.
Crumble ground beef into the skillet; cook and stir until brown, 8 to 10 minutes.
Pour milk in a shallow dish. Soak bread in milk.
Squeeze excess milk from bread and set milk aside.
Add bread to beef mixture.
Stir in raisins, chutney, curry powder, apricot jam, salt, and black pepper.
Pour mixture into the prepared baking dish.
Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour.
Whisk together reserved milk, egg, and a pinch of salt.
Pour over top of beef mixture.
Lay bay leaf on top of milk mixture.
Continue baking until top is golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes.
Remove bay leaf before serving.
Serves 8