Recipes to die for, darlings!

Evita's Bossie Sikelela, published by Umuzi.

Evita's Bossie Sikelela, published by Umuzi.

Published Oct 21, 2012

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Evita’s Bossie Sikelela, published by Umuzi, an imprint of Random House Struik and written by Tannie Evita Bezuidenhout with a foreword by actress Charlize Theron, is one of those books no recipe aficionado or proud South African should be without.

Who else could have thought of, tried and tested, waterblommetjie chicken or dandelion salad for the dinner table?

Evita describes the book as a celebration of the culinary art of our multitalented nation, having gathered recipes from across the country. She has added tips on essential treatments and medicines as well, all the while continuing the story of one of South Africa’s most well-loved characters.

Omeshnie Naidoo extracted a few recipes from the book to share with you:

Katie’s orange duck

1 large duck, cut into 6 portions

2 medium onions, sliced

4 small turnips, quartered

1 stick ginger, grated

2 cups chicken stock

juice of two large oranges

1 stick cinnamon

2 star anise

salt and pepper

3 tbs marmalade

juice of 1 lemon

Put the duck portions – three pieces at a time – in a large heavy bottomed pot and render the fat slowly. Remove the duck from the pot and set aside. Add the onions and cook slowly over moderate heat. If there is too much fat in the pot, pour it off – you only need about 2 tbs to cook the onions. Stir and add the turnips and ginger. When the onions are translucent, add the stock, orange juice ,cinnamon and star anise. Season with salt and pepper. Turn up the heat to a bubble and return duck to the pot. Lower the heat and simmer for about 40 minutes. When the duck is cooked, stir in the marmalade and half of the lemon juice. Season again, taste and add more lemon juice if necessary. Serve with plain white rice.

Morogo beef stew

oil

2 medium onions, chopped

800g beef brisket, cubed

1 large bunch of morogo,

well rinsed and chopped

(about 4 cups)

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 ripe tomatoes, chopped

Heat oil in a pot and sauté the onions until translucent. Add the meat and brown all over. Add a little water and braise for 30 minutes. Stir in the morogo and garlic and cook for 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and simmer over low heat for about 15 minutes. Serve with putu pap.

Caramelised pork belly

2 litres water

2 cubes vegetable stock

1 kg pork belly

2 tbs honey

2 tbs soy sauce

2 tbs wine vinegar

2 tbs tomato ketchup

a pinch of chilli powder

salt and pepper

In a large pot, bring the water and stock cubes to the boil. Plunge the pork belly into the stock, lower the heat and simmer for 1.5 hours. In the meantime, mix the honey, soy sauce, vinegar, ketchup and chilli. Season well. Turn off the heat and let the meat cool in the stock. Remove the meat, drain and cut into 3cm slices. Put the slices into the honey marinade, cover and leave for 2 hours. Braai or grill the pork over moderate heat for about 10 minutes each side, or until lightly caramelised. Pork belly is delicious as a starter snack or main course. Serve hot with bean purée and green salad.

Chicken in pomegranate sauce

4 chickens quarters

(thighs and drumsticks)

oil

1 medium onion, chopped

4 pomegranates

3 tbs lemon juice

3 tbs sugar

5 tbs water

salt and pepper

1 tbs chopped toasted

almonds

1 tbs chopped fresh parsley

Brown the chicken pieces in oil in a large heavy-bottomed frying pan. Remove the chicken and set aside. Sauté the onion in the same pan, adding more oil if necessary, until golden, stirring regularly. Halve the pomegranates, spoon out the red seeds and discard the pith. Set aside half the seeds and pound the rest in a mortar to extract the juice. Alternatively, put in blender for a few seconds to crack the seeds. Strain the juice – you should get about 1 cup. Mix the lemon juice, sugar and water to make a thin syrup. Pour this into the pan and add the pomegranate juice. Simmer and stir. Return the chicken to the pan, season and cook slowly for 1 hour, or until the chicken is tender. Taste and adjust the seasoning. It should have a delicate sweet and sour flavour. Sprinkle over the parsley, almonds and reserved pomegranate seeds. Serve with basmati rice.

Lentils in red wine with bacon

2 cups lentils

1 litre water

1 cup red wine

8 rashers streaky bacon, diced

2 medium red onions,

chopped

3 sprigs fresh thyme

2 cloves garlic, crushed

oil

salt and pepper

Bring the lentils, red wine and water to the boil in a pot. Reduce the heat and simmer until tender. In the meantime fry the bacon in a large frying pan until crispy. Remove the bacon from pan and set aside. Sauté the onions in the bacon fat with the thyme and garlic, adding a little oil if necessary. Cook until just golden. Return the bacon to the pan. Drain the lentils and add to the pan. Season to taste, mix well and spoon into a serving dish. Lentils are best served warm or at room temperature. Only add salt after cooking.

Variations: Garnish with 2 quartered hard-boiled eggs, or combine the lentils with strips of leftover steak from the braai, or sausages chopped into thick rounds. Toss together in a good, mustardy vinaigrette.

Dandelion and bacon salad

4 handfuls young dandelion leaves

1 clove garlic, crushed

3 tbs vinaigrette

3 slices stale bread, cubed

sunflower oil

smoked streaky bacon, diced

a dash of vinegar

Pick young dandelion leaves close to the centre of the plant. The dark green leaves are bitter, but to counteract this, soak the cut leaves in water overnight. Blend the garlic and vinaigrette in the bottom of a salad bowl. Wash the dandelion leaves, add them to the bowl and toss well. Make croutons by frying the bread cubes in sunflower oil until crisp and golden. Drain on paper towel. Fry bacon until crisp and toss over the leaves along with the croutons. Add the vinegar to the pan in which you cooked the bacon and swirl to mix the bacon fat. Pour this over the salad and serve immediately.

Variation: Add quartered hard-boiled or poached eggs. - The Mercury

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