
Culinary Hotline - 21 September 2022
We’re heating up Culinary Hotline with the flavours of Mzansi
Recipe by: Clem Pedro
Ingredients:
Umngqusho onee mbhotyi
Recipe by Pumla Brook-Thomae
Ingredients
1 Cup samp
1 Cup sugar or butter beans
1litre hot water
2 Tbsp vegetable fat
½ beef stock cube (optional)
3 tsp white pepper (optional)
1 tsp salt
Guxe (Okra) and Vuswa bya dini (fermented porridge)
Recipe by Chef La Bumbu
Ingredients:
1 bundle okra pods (8-10)
½ Cup monkey peanuts crushed
1 tomato, diced
2 Cups water, boiled
Vuswa bya dini – Fermented porridge
Recipe by Chef La Bumbu
Ingredients:
250ml warm water
250ml cold water
250g maize meal
Tomato Bredie:
Ingredients:
1kg beef thick rib with a good layer of fat cubed or
1kg beef shin on the bone cubed
1 ½ Tbsp vegetable oil
1 large onions chopped
1 tin chopped tomato
1 celery stalk chopped
½ sachet tomato paste (25 g)
2 carrots, chopped
1 Cup chicken stock liquid
1 tsp salt
½ tsp ground black pepper
½ tsp dried Italian herbs
½ Tbsp sugar
2 large potatoes, chopped
Method:
Umngqusho onee mbhotyi:
Place the samp and beans in a colander and rinse until the water runs clear. Place in a bowl and top with 1 litre boiling water.
Cover and leave to soak overnight or until the samp has doubled in volume.
The following day, first discard all the soaking water and rinse the samp and beans off a few more times until the water runs clear.
Transfer this mixture into a pot and top with 1-litre boiling water.
Simmer over medium heat for 1 hour until al dente. If you prefer softer samp, cook for another 30 minutes.
Season with vegetable fat, beef stock cubes, white pepper and salt.
Serve warm as is or with ilaxa (wild greens) or isityu meat stew for a more extravagant Xhosa meal.
For a summer dish, simply omit the beans. Once the samp is cooked through cool and serve with amasi fermented milk.
Guxe (Okra) and Vuswa bya dini (fermented porridge):
Cook the okra in boiling water for 5 minutes then drain. Add the okra back into the pot and add the tomatoes, nuts and seasoning. Cook for a further 10 minutes and serve with vuswa bya dini (ferment stiff porridge)
Vuswa bya dini – Fermented porridge:
In a bucket with a lid that closes properly add the warm water and maize meal. Stir to combine until smooth with no lumps. Close the bucket tightly with the lid on and leave to ferment for 3 days.
After 3 days add cold water to the fermented mixture and bring to a boil. Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer for about 10 minutes covered. Remove the lid and cook the porridge uncovered while stirring every now and then to prevent lumps. The more you stir you’ll realize how thicker the mixture will become. Once the porridge has set serve with guxe or sprinkled with sugar if desired.
Tomato Bredie:
In hight heat warm oil in a heavy bottom pot and brown the meat in batches.
Remove the meat from the oil and set keep aside.
In the same pot fry the onions till translucent.
Return the meat to the same pot and add tomatoes, celery, tomato paste, carrots, herbs, sugar, salt pepper and stock.
Bring to the boil and turn down the heat.
Simmer for two hours.
Add potatoes and cook till both the potatoes and the meat are tender.
Do not be tempted to add water. If you need more fluid add red wine or stock.
Serve with rice.
Chefs Tip: This recipe can be made vegetarian by substituting the chicken stock for vegetable stock, and the chicken for mushrooms or tofu.