Like all South Africans, the Get It girls love a good braai! In honour of Heritage Day this year we decided to host our own little celebratory braai and asked some of our favourite local businesses to help us make it extra special.
Just because our gatherings have to be small and intimate, doesn’t meant they shouldn’t still be fabulous. A little bit of thought and effort (and a some awesome, locally-sourced accessories, ingredients and creativity) make for a fantastic braai day celebration! Just look what we managed to rustle up with a little bit of help from our friends . . .
THE TABLE
When Love Laugh owner Cindy offered to create a Heritage Day-inspired table for us, we knew we were in good hands. Passionate about people and creating beautiful bespoke events and weddings, Cindy and her team bring all their creative flair to every event they are involved in. From the Bully Beef and Lucky Star tins filled with proteas, to the shwe-shwe print napkins, classic tin bowls and elegant animal-print-inspired wine glasses … she didn’t disappoint!
Cindy’s top 5 tablescaping tips:
1. Try include stunning napkins. Printed, natural linens, or textured, this always elevates the look of any table when styling.
2. Stunning, elegant, clear, coloured or embossed glassware is always good to have. Green is my go-to favourite at the moment.
3. Accessorize with flowers and candles. Different colours and shapes of candles are great grouped together to create focal points. Add a few stems of gorgeous flowers, aloes, bunny tails etc.
4. Remember this basic rule of tablescaping: layer with textures and colour.
5. Try to have a theme or colour palette or find some type of inspiration to work from – this always helps create a gorgeous end result. Details: Love Laugh, Lifestyle Centre Ballito, www.lovelaugh.co.za
THE WINE
Let’s be honest, a good bottle of wine is a verrrry important element of a braai! We were thrilled to have received these fab wines from the newly opened boutique wine store in Salt Rock, called Wineology. Owners Vanessa and Peter are passionate about celebrating unique wines and proud to be the only KZN stockists of the of Black Elephant range from Franschoek.
Black Elephant Vintners believe that wine should not be about conformity or snobbery, but fun and experimental – and we couldn’t agree more. We got to taste the wines from their Festival range, all of which were honestly great. The names just are our favourite! The red blend is called ‘Three Men in Tub with a Rubber Duck’, the rose ‘Rose Rebel’ and the Sauvignon Blanc ‘Two Dogs, a Peacock & a Horse’. We also tried their wine-in-a-can selection and we are officially sold! Hello new perfect picnic partner! Details: Wineology, Sage Centre, Salt Rock, [email protected], @wineologysaltrock
BRAAI ACCESSORIES
We believe that great food needs to be served and presented beautifully and these locally-made, high quality serving and carving boards couldn’t be more perfect for your braai day spoils! Bruce Wacher is a local businessman and his Wacher.Co range of wooden boards and accessories are exquisitely designed and produced. Made from bamboo and plantation teak wood, the edge grain double-sided boards are resilient and practical with juice grooves and funky asymmetric shapes … and they’re oh-so-lovely to look at too!
A good knife goes a long way when it comes to carving your meat, which is why we were thrilled to have a few beautiful knives from Sheffield Beach knife maker David Hoehler’s Hoehler Handmade knife range on hand! Details: Bruce – 082 445 5474, @wacher.co; David – 078 639 8356, @hoehlerhandmade
THE VENUE
Bordering a thick, coastal forest with fish eagles flying overhead and a sparkling blue pool just off the deck, the exquisite show house at The Reserve in the Zululami Luxury Coastal Estate was the perfect spot to host our small gathering. The Reserve is the latest private residential complex within the estate and, using world-class technology, allows homeowners the freedom to customise the design of their home online. The 3 and 4-bedroom homes have views of the ocean, wetlands and surrounding coastal forests. Details: www.zululamiestate.co.za/the-reserve
THE MEAT
By far the star of the show at any braai has to be the meat. We were given a selection of fantastic spoils from hands-down our favourite butchery in town, Wozza Meat Co. Having grown up on a farm, owner Warwick Taylor absolutely loves being a hands-on butcher. He thrives on serving excellent quality meat and poultry to his customers and has a fantastic team to back him up. He has two butcheries – one at the Ballito Junction Regional Mall and one at The Market at Lifestyle Centre Ballito – and also has an online store. For our braai, Warwick rustled up a great selection of nyama, including grass fed sirloin steaks, pork rashers smothered in a honey glaze and pineapple glaze, skinny lamb chops and the most amazing and tender free range boneless chicken thigh kebabs marinated in their Wozza original sauce! Absolutely delicious. Details: www.wozzameat.co.za, [email protected], 032 586 1799
THE SIDES
What would a braai be without a variety of delicious side dishes? Olive Twist is a Salt Rock-based professional catering company run by the wonderful owner, Ros Ivey. A talented chef and lover of all-things-delicious, Ros and her team have catered for all types of events around the province and country … from understated rustic to trendy retro and chic elegance. They do all sorts of events, weddings, corporate lunches and intimate at-home celebrations and also have a range of frozen meals, awesome kraft food boxes and homemade relishes!
“Everyone loves a braai,” says Ros. “So often on the weekend we can ‘smell a braai’ in the air and, well, any excuse for a South African to light a fire! Our take on the menu was to include some SA favourites … but with our twist to each dish!”
Ros served up these yummy dishes: Corn, Chive & Smoked Paprika Bread with Jalapeño Butter; Charred Kidney Bean, Tomato and Coriander salad with homemade Chive and Lemon vinaigrette; Parmesan Crust and Herb Potato Bake with a twist and Tomato Salsa (on everything) and Salsa Verde (for the meat).
Corn, Chive & Smoked Paprika Bread with Jalapeno Butter
What you need:
1 cup corn meal, 1 cup flour, 1/4 cup sugar, 4 teaspons of baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon smoked paprika, 1 teaspoon snipped chives, 1 cup milk, 1egg, 1/4 cup oil
To make:
Stir together the flour, corn meal, sugar, baking powder and salt until evenly combined. Whisk together milk, egg, and oil. Pour the wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Bake for 20 minutes in an oven proof loaf pan (or even better, bake in a cast iron loaf pan in hot coals during your braai!).
Serve with jalapeno butter
To make butter: Blend 1 cup butter with 3 chopped jalapenos until well combined and freeze or refrigerate until serving.
Details: www.olivetwist.co.za, @olivetwistboutique, [email protected], 084 208 3799
Text: Leah Shone | Photographs: Emily Allan, Life Space Media, @lifespacemedia
