While you sit and plan your next family feast, perhaps consider these lekker, classically South African recipes with a twist, conjured up by celebrity Chef Lentswe Bhengu, featuring Bull Brand Corned Meat.
These recipes are quick and easy to prepare, so less time is needed attending to the pots and more time left to create some wholesome memories with the family.
Mammas Vetkoek stuffed with Chakalaka Corned Meat
Nothing says comfort food better than a warm vetkoek and with the addition of Chakalaka Corned Meat, you’re in for a real treat.
INGREDIENTS (Serves 6)
Chakalaka Corned MeatFilling:
• 3Tbs Vegetable Oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• ½ Tsp Cayenne Pepper
• 2 cans Bull Brand Chakalaka Corned Meat
• 2Tbs Barbeque Spice
• 2 cups chopped vegetables (use whatever you have in the fridge — celery, beans, sweet potato, carrot) OR 2 cups drained Rhodes Quality Mixed Vegetable
• Salt & Pepper to taste Vetkoek:
• 1 kg flour, plus extra for dusting
• 120g sugar
• 1 10g Sachet Instant Yeast
• 2Tbs Oil
• 1Tbs Salt
• 1l warm water, keep 1 cup extra (if dough is too stiff)
• Vegetable oil, for deep frying
METHOD
Chakalaka Corned Meat filling:
• Heat the oil, in a large frying pan over medium-high heat.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Add the onion, cayenne pepper and garlic and sauté until the onion softens
• Add the corned meat, breaking it up with a spoon.
• Cook for 5 minutes until browned
• Stir in the barbeque spice and cook for one minute.
• Add chopped vegetables and peas, stirring until cooked through.
• Check seasoning.
Vetkoek:
• Mix the flour, sugar, yeast, oil, salt and warm water.
• Add extra water only if necessary. Knead thoroughly, then allow to prove for 30 minutes until double in original size (this will take longer on a cold day).
• Dust a tray with flour.
• Scoop up handfuls of dough and roll into balls. Place the vetkoek on the tray and allow to rise until doubled in size.
• Heat the oil in a deep saucepan.
• Deep fry a few vetkoek at a time (do not a lot of balls at the same time)
• Keep turning the balls after every 2 minutes.
• Check the vetkoek after 10 minutes – they should have risen to the top of the oil. Drain on kitchen paper until ready to serve.
Gogo’s Cottage Pie
A popular dish, with a Gogo twist, that will serve spoonfuls of happiness for the whole family.
INGREDIENTS (Servs 4-6)
• 2 cans Bull Brand Corned Meat
• 1 pkt Potatoes, cleaned with skins on (for mash)
• 2 Onions, chopped
• 2 Cloves Garlic, chopped
• 1 Red Pepper, chopped
• 2 Tbs Tomato Paste
• 15ml Worcestershire Sauce
• 1Tbs Mixed Herbs
• 1 cup Frozen Mixed Veggies
• 3 Carrots, grated
• 1tsp Baking Powder (optional)
• 100ml milk
• Salt & White Pepper to taste
METHOD
• In a large frying pan over medium to high heat, sauté onions, garlic and pepper till soft.
• Season with salt & pepper.
• Add the corned meat and fry off until well combined, adding salt, pepper, mixed herbs, tomato paste, tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, mixing in well.
• Reduce the heat to medium.
• Add the carrots and simmer till soft.
• Turn off the heat, add the mixed veggies, stir and close the lid. Allow the veggies to cook within the residual heat.
• For the mash, cut the potatoes in quarters
• Add salt to taste and the potatoes to a pot of cold water
• Bring the pot to the boil and cook the potatoes till soft.
• Drain the liquid with strainer and mash the potatoes with a masher.
• Add the milk
• Add the baking powder to give the mash a fluffier texture
• Assemble:
• Preheat the grill
• Lightly grease an oven dish with cook & spray.
• Layer the mince at the bottom of the pan, patting it down gently with a spoon and levelling it out.
• Add the mash on top of the mince and spread out evenly (optional – you can pipe the mash using a piping bag)
• Put the pie in the oven and cook till the mash is lightly browned
Tips to upcycle your Bull Brand tins after cooking:
Remove the labels and give each tin a good wash. Once dry, these can be used to bake individual cottage pies for the whole family and creates a rustic feel for your next supper time.
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