Bobotie

Bobotie

Beef, Lamb
South Africa, Main Dish

Serves 6

Bobotie is the national dish of South Africa. It's a delicious, unusual and easy dish. It’s traditionally served with yellow rice, although I think a salad of some sort is also a welcome counterpoint to such a rich main course. This is exceptionally delicious made with lamb instead of beef, or a mixture of the two.

Ingredients #

  • 2 slices white bread
  • 1/3 cup milk
  • 1 large yellow onion, chopped
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 3 cloves garlic, smashed
  • 2 tsp grated fresh ginger
  • 1 1/2 lbs lean ground beef
  • 1 tsp Madras curry powder
  • 1 tsp dried Fines Herbes
  • 3 cloves
  • 3 allspice berries
  • 2 tbsp mango chutney (Mrs. Balls is traditional, but Major Grey’s is fine)
  • 3 tbsp golden raisins
  • 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
  • 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
  • A few dashes of Maggi Arome (optional)
  • 6 bay leaves (the imported duller-colored ones — California bay leaves are too strong)
  • 1 cup half-and-half
  • 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1 tsp turmeric

Instructions #

Remove the crusts from the bread, tear it into pieces, and place it in a small bowl. Add the milk and set aside. Preheat oven to 350 F.

Place a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the butter. Fry the onions in the butter, stirring frequently, until they are soft and starting to brown. Add the garlic and ginger, and cook for another minute. Mix in the ground beef, using a wooden spoon to break up the meat into small crumbs. Cook until the meat is nicely browned.

Stir in the curry powder, herbs, whole spices, chutney, raisins, 2 bay leaves, 1 tsp of salt, black pepper to taste, vinegar, Worcestershire, and a couple dashes of Maggi Arome. Add 1/4 cup water, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

While it cooks, combine the eggs, cream, tumeric, and salt and pepper (to taste) in a bowl and whisk well to combine.

Squeeze the milk from the bread, and add the bread to the meat mixture. Stir very well — the bread should break up and more or less disappear.

Pour the meat mixture into a 9x13” baking dish. Smooth and press down the top with the back of a wooden spoon. Pour the custard mixture over the top, and place the remaining bay leaves on top of the custard. Bake for 35-40 minutes, until the topping is set and starting to turn golden.

Allow the casserole to rest for 10 minutes before serving.