CHEERS | BOOK GIVEAWAY
Hello darkness, my old friend
South Africans are endlessly creative. They can find a ray of sunshine or something to laugh about in most situations. Even load-shedding! Brothers-in-law Greg Gilowey and Karl Tessendorff, the duo behind Beer Country on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram channelled their inspiration into a new book: Blackouts and Boerewors.
Greg Gilowey and Karl Tessendorf have endeared themselves to thousands of South Africans who love beer and also love to cook on fire.
The duo were runners-up on the first series of the Ultimate Braai Master – and parlayed that into genuinely living their best lives. As Beer Country (@beercountrysa on Instagram and @BeerCountrySA on Twitter) they committed fully to living their dream of tasting beer, craft beer in particular, and cooking al fresco, over hot coals. They believe in looking on the braait side of life – and they intend to soften the blackout blues by equipping households with great recipes.
“Every blackout is a fire begging to be built,” the promo blurb states. “With a little planning, some clever thinking and 40 recipes – quick and easy, plan ahead and weekend winners – load-shedding can go from the worst part of your day to the best.”
Their first book, Beer Food Fire, was featured in a previous issue of CHEERS mag and their second, Pots Pans & Potjies was equally well received by an enthusiastic braai mad nation. As Penguin Random House’s publicity blurb stated at the time of the Pots Pans & Potjies release: “In today’s insta-everything world, cast iron reminds us of a simpler time. A time when things were built to last, not break within a year. A well-seasoned pan is a cooking Swiss Army knife. A solid flat pot is the ultimate campfire jack-of-all-trades, and the humble potjie pot is more than just a pot. It’s our version of low and slow and it has some important lessons to teach. It forces you to relax and enjoy the ride, and to realise that the best things really are worth waiting for.”
International Beer Day falls on August 1 followed just a few weeks later in September by Heritage Day (which doubles unofficially as Braai Day) and while it’s still likely to be somewhat wintery locally, there’s no reason not to turn to the pages of their new book, Blackouts and Boerewors for inspiration.
COMPETITION TERMS AND CONDITIONS
Competition submissions should reach us no later than 25th August 2023. The Prize/s is as indicated, no alternatives or cash will be provided. The decision of Integrated Media will be final, and no correspondence will be entered into. Under no circumstances shall Integrated Media, TOPS at SPAR, SPAR or its appointed representatives and the prize donors be liable to anyone who enters these Prize Draws for an indirect or consequential loss howsoever arising which may be suffered in relation to the Prize Draws. By entering these competitions, you make yourself subject to receiving promotional information. Entrants are deemed to have accepted these terms and conditions. Prize Draw Rules: The prize draw is only open to consumers who must be over 18 years of age and resident in South Africa. Employees of Integrated Media and TOPS at SPAR, SPAR and their respective advertising, media and PR agencies, as well as the family members, consultants, directors, associates and trading partners of such organisations and persons are ineligible for the draw. Participants can only win one competition every three issues.
It’s a survival strategy, busy author, chef, food stylist and mom Vickie de Beer maintains. And she would know. As the food editor for popular Afrikaans magazine Rooi Rose for 18 years, she knows how hard it can be juggling work deadlines and feeding a family of growing boys and their sports schedules! So meal prep of nutritious, balanced and tasty food is vital.
Planning is second nature to this food dynamo. It's something she has had to do for years after one of her sons was diagnosed as a type 1 diabetic. It turned out to be fortuitous because the family’s transition to a low-carb lifestyle inspired a range of books: The Low-Carb Solution for Diabetics which won the Sunday Times Best Cookbook of the Year award in 2015, My Low-Carb Kitchen and Low-Carb Express, all of whichhave sold thousands of copies locally and internationally.
Some of her family’s favourite dishes feature on the pages of this new book, from soups and stews to oven bakes and one-pan dishes. Then there are sauces and ‘flavour starters’, which can be prepared ahead of time, so a wholesome meal from scratch can easily be pulled together on busy nights.
What’s more, Vickie knows that all South Africans are faced with the unique challenge of loadshedding, which can disrupt cooking time in the kitchen. Meal prep is a clever way to work around annoying blackouts – making wholesome meals in advance, when the electricity is available, as a great way to ensure the family can still eat well, even with limited resources.
Vickie includes tips for freezing and defrosting food, batch cooking, as well as a sample seven-day meal plan to show how you can combine advance prep with dishes made from scratch on the night. All of the 75 recipes indicate how many portions they make, allowing you to choose whether to freeze them as a single meal, or in portion sizes to suit the family’s needs.
Chapters include meal prep, flavour starters such as pastes, spice mixes and rubs, marinades and the like. Then there are cook-in sauces, fermented salads and salsas. Broths and soups get their time to shine in a chapter, as does slow cooking. Naturally there are one pan and tray-bake meals, along with the old faithfuls of basics and side dishes.
It is indeed clever cooking.
COMPETITION TERMS AND CONDITIONS
Competition submissions should reach us no later than 25th April 2023. The Prize/s is as indicated, no alternatives or cash will be provided. The decision of Integrated Media will be final, and no correspondence will be entered into. Under no circumstances shall Integrated Media, TOPS at SPAR, SPAR or its appointed representatives and the prize donors be liable to anyone who enters these Prize Draws for an indirect or consequential loss howsoever arising which may be suffered in relation to the Prize Draws. By entering these competitions, you make yourself subject to receiving promotional information. Entrants are deemed to have accepted these terms and conditions. Prize Draw Rules: The prize draw is only open to consumers who must be over 18 years of age and resident in South Africa. Employees of Integrated Media and TOPS at SPAR, SPAR and their respective advertising, media and PR agencies, as well as the family members, consultants, directors, associates and trading partners of such organisations and persons are ineligible for the draw. Participants can only win one competition every three issues.
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greg gilowey & karl tessendorf's Cookbook
Blackouts & Boerewors
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Boerie-Stuffed French Braaibroodjies
Is it a boerie roll, or is it a braaibroodjie? Who cares! It’s so damn tasty and that’s all that matters.
Serves:
4-6
Prep time:
20min
Cook time:
10min
The Broodjie:
1 large French loaf, sliced in half horizontally
Butter, softened
Chutney
2 store-bought pickled onions, sliced
100 g mozzarella, sliced
600 g good quality thick boerewors
Olive oil
To Serve:
Green Herb Sauce Or
Lime Sweet Chilli Sauce
Method:
Start by scooping out the soft bread from the top and bottom of the French loaf. This makes it easier to nestle the ingredients into the bread. Brush each side with butter, then add a layer of chutney to each half. Sprinkle on the pickled onions, top with cheese and press them down.
Using a sharp knife, slice the wors skin, then peel it off and discard. It’s easier if you slice the wors into manageable pieces. Drizzle a little olive oil onto your hands and flatten the wors meat on your work surface until it is almost the same width as the bread. Lift the meat off the work surface and pop it onto the bread. Use your thumbs to work it all the way to the edges of the bread. The meat will stop the edges of the bread from burning on the braai. Repeat this until you’ve used all the meat and have evenly covered the top and bottom halves of the loaf.
Place the loaves, meat-side down, onto a flip grid. Close it but don’t secure it. Braai over medium-hot coals for 8–10 minutes until the meat is caramelised and the cheese melted. Flip the loaves and toast the underside of the bread for a minute before removing them from the braai. Pop the loaves onto a chopping board and top with Green Herb Sauce or Lime Sweet Chilli Sauce. Slice and serve immediately.
Notes
Defrost frozen phyllo pastry in its packaging for 2 hours at room temperature or overnight in the fridge. Half a 500 g pack should be sufficient for one pie. This recipe is not suitable for freezing.
Smoky Steak Tacos with Chipotle Esquites Salad
This Mexican street-food classic gets a braaied taco supercharger.
Serves:
4-6
Prep time:
20min
Cook time:
15m
Serves:
4-6
Prep time:
20min
Cook time:
15min
Chipotle Esquites Salad:
4 corn cobs, husks removed
Olive oil
1 avo, peeled and diced
2 rounds of feta cheese, crumbled
2 spring onions, finely sliced
A small handful of fresh coriander, chopped
2 chipotle peppers in adobo, chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
2–3 Tbsp mayonnaise
1 Tbsp paprika
Zest and juice of 1 lime
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
The Steak and Tacos:
600 g rump or ribeye steak
Olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper (or your favourite braai spice)
Flour or corn tortillas
To Serve:
Green Chilli Sauce
Lime wedges or halves
Method:
Drizzle the corn with some olive oil, then braai over high heat to char. When the cobs are charred on all sides, remove them from the heat and allow to cool. Slice the kernels off the cobs and place into a mixing bowl. Add the remaining salad ingredients and mix well. Season to taste and set aside.
Drizzle the steak with oil and season. Braai the steak over hot coals for 3–4 minutes per side or until the internal temperature hits 50 ºC for medium-rare. Let the steak rest while you heat up the tortillas on the fire. Place the warm tortillas into a pot with a lid to keep them from drying out. Slice the steak thinly and season with salt and pepper.
To assemble, lay a few slices of steak on each tortilla, top with the esquites salad and drizzle over the Green Chilli Sauce. Serve with lime wedges or halves for squeezing.
Notes
If using frozen meatballs, allow them to thaw completely before using. Instead of homemade Moroccan paste, use 2 Tbsp store-bought harissa paste. Replace homemade Tomato Cook-in Sauce with 1 can (400 g) whole peeled tomatoes (crushed with your hands or a fork, along with the juice from the can).
Braaied Butter Chicken Curry
Butter chicken seems to be the universal curry that everyone loves, and for good reason. It’s so damn tasty, and this version takes things to a whole new braai level.
serves:
6-8
Prep time:
overnight + 30min
Cook time:
1hr + resting time
serves:
6-8
Prep time:
overnight +30min
Cook time:
1hr + resting time
The Chicken:
1½ C double cream yoghurt
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
A big knob of fresh ginger, finely chopped
2 Tbsp garam masala
2 Tbsp Kashmiri chilli powder
1 Tbsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground turmeric
A squeeze of lemon juice
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 kg deboned and skinned chicken thighs
6 kebab sticks
The Potjie:
Oil for frying
A big knob of butter
2 large onions, peeled and chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
A knob of fresh ginger, finely chopped
1 Tbsp Kashmiri chilli powder
1 Tbsp garam masala
1 Tbsp ground cumin
½ Tbsp ground coriander
2 C tomato purée
2 Tbsp fish sauce
1 Tbsp brown sugar
100 g crème fraîche
1 tsp crushed dried fenugreek leaves (you’ll have to visit a spice shop for these)
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
To Serve:
Naan bread or basmati rice
¼ C almond flakes, toasted
Fresh coriander
Method:
To make the chicken, mix all the ingredients, except the chicken and kebab sticks, in a container with a lid. Add the chicken and give it a good massage, then refrigerate to marinate overnight. The next day, remove the container from the fridge and allow it to come to room temperature.
Thread the chicken onto the kebab sticks and braai over very hot coals. You are not trying to cook the chicken through, you just need to char and caramelise it. Brush each kebab with extra marinade at each turn, then set aside when you are happy with them. Allow to cool before removing the chicken from the kebab sticks. At this point you can cut the chicken pieces into small pieces or leave as they are.
To make the potjie, preheat a number 3 potjie over medium-high-heat coals. Add a splash of oil and the knob of butter and fry the onions until they soften and start to brown. Add the garlic and ginger and fry for a minute until fragrant. Toss in all the spices and fry for another minute. Stir in the tomato purée, fish sauce and sugar. Bring to a simmer over low-heat coals for 20 minutes to let the flavours make friends.
This step is optional, but it does give you that awesome curry house gravy result. After 20 minutes, remove the pot from the heat and use a hand blender to blitz the curry sauce until smooth. Return the pot to the heat and add the chicken. Stir in the crème fraîche and fenugreek leaves and simmer for another 15 minutes to cook the chicken. Season to taste, then remove the pot from the heat, cover and let it rest for 10 minutes before serving. Serve it with naan bread or basmati rice with a sprinkle of toasted almonds and fresh coriander.
note
If you do not consume alcohol, replace the wine with an additional cup (250 ml) of beef broth or water.
