The Louw's Curried Potjie

It's becoming colder and colder by the day in Cape Town and menu's have quickly become richer and heavier along with a hefty stock up on warming red wine. I have mentioned my craving for "Potjie Kos" a stew cooked in a large three footed, cast iron pot over a fire.

I am not entirely sure if there is a classic version of this dish but I think your favorite stew recipe cooked this way becomes a "Potjie" the Afrikaans word for pot.

My craving so overwhelming I basically invited myself, it was really so good I had to post the recipe on behalf of my friends the Louw's however nobody in South Africa ever knows if the potjie was good or was everybody drunk or even if the cast iron pot makes any difference, not to mention the three legs... we will just keep on making them regardless.

This one is a curried chicken pot but may be made vegetarian by replacing the chicken with butternut and eggplant, dairy free and carb free without the rice.

The Louw's Curried Potjie (aka Sannie)
serves 6

1kg chicken thigh and drumstick, skin removed
30ml cooking oil
2 onions, sliced into rings
3 cloves garlic, crushed
5 cardamom pods
1 cinnamon stick
1 bay leaf
30ml chopped ginger
1 chilli chopped
15ml mild curry powder
2ml turmeric
5ml ground coriander
1 by 410g tin whole peeled tomatoes
6 medium potatoes peeled and cut into 4
5ml salt
1 500g packet potjie vegetables or a mix of peeled baby carrots, rough cut baby marrow and baby onions
1 bunch fresh coriander
20ml lemon juice
40ml cornflour slaked with water

Make the curry paste by placing garlic, cardamom, cinnamon, bay leaf, ginger, chilli, curry powder, turmeric, ground coriander in a pestle and mortar, grind until smooth.

Allow the potjie pot to heat over the fire, add the oil and brown the chicken pieces in the pot, remove and add the onions, allow to soften.

Add the curry paste, cooking for 2 minutes then top with the chicken, tinned tomatoes, arrange the potatoes on top and lastly the vegetables. Adding salt to each layer.

Close the pot and adjust the coals to make it simmer, cook for 1.5 hours.
Check the seasoning with salt and lemon juice, add cornflour if necessary to thicken and lastly add the roughly chopped fresh coriander.

Best eaten with rice and a salsa or yoghurt raita known as sambals and Mrs Balls chutney.

Cucumber sambal
100ml chopped cucumber, seeds and skin removed
50ml desiccated coconut
100ml Bulgarian yogurt
30ml flaked almonds
15ml lemon juice
10ml chopped fresh mint
10ml chopped fresh coriander
2ml salt
grind of pepper

Mix together and serve along side the Potjie

Recipe and picture copyright by Tamsyn Wells and Julie Louw

Beef and Vegetable Bobotie with Almond and Coconut Topping

I have decided to cut down on wheat in my meals since summer has begun and my drink of choice is mostly Artisan beers loaded with wheat and also following the Paleo diet again which I have posted about before which is not really a diet as much as a way of eating inspired by my friend David Grier and his recently released book, The Real Meal Revolution made with Professor Tim Noakes from the Sports Science Institute. When I receive my copy I will post a few recipes.

I have not made curry in ages and tonight I decided to make this Bobotie, a Classic South African dish with a twist mainly because I like vegetables and I prefer the coconut almond taste to the topping (dairy free), Bobotie is basically a spiced mince with an egg custard topping found in recipe books in the early 1600's already.

Beef and Vegetable Bobotie with Almond and Coconut Topping
Serves 4

30ml Sunflower oil
1 medium onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
thumb sized piece of ginger, peeled and grated
1 dried chilli, halved
300g lean beef mince
1 carrot, peeled and finely chopped
2 baby marrow, rinsed and cubed
1 tbsp tomato paste
5ml curry powder
2ml garam masala
2ml cumin ground
2ml coriander ground
3 ml Turmeric
10ml white vinegar
20ml chutney
Squeeze of lemon
10 fine beans cut into 1cm long pieces
2 potatoes cooked and cubed (optional)
5ml cornflour
salt and pepper

Topping
2tbsp coconut powder
2 eggs
350ml almond milk
10ml chutney
pinch of salt
few toasted almonds

Heat the oil in a medium sized pot, fry off the onions, garlic and ginger.
Add the mince and fry until the liquid has evaporated and it starts to fry again.
Add the tomato paste and spices and fry off for a few minutes.
add the vinegar, lemon and chutney, cook for 20 minutes.
Add the beans, cooked potato cubes if using and season.
Cook for another 5 minutes then thicken with cornflour slaked in water.
Place in a 25cm casserole dish which has been sprayed with spray and cook.
Mix all the ingredients for the topping except the almonds.
Put the mince mixture in the casserole dish and smooth the top.
Gently pour the topping over and Bake at 180 - 200°c for 20 minutes.
Serve with chopped tomato and onion flavoured with vinegar, salt and pepper, banana's and chutney.

This Recipe is wheat and dairy free.
Picture and recipe copyright by Tamsyn Wells

Crunchy Nutty Chicken Casserole

This delicious casserole is quick and easy to prepare, takes only 30 minutes from scratch and its flavours are a cross between a curry and a satay sauce. The crunch comes from using crunchy peanut butter. It can be made with or without dairy and the chicken can be replaced with vegetables and chickpeas on meat free monday.

Crunchy Nutty Chicken Casserole
Serves 4

Paste:
1 chilli
15ml ginger grated
2 cloves garlic, crushed
30g fresh coriander
10ml water

10ml oil for frying
4 chicken breast, cubed
1 onion chopped
5-10ml ground cumin
75 - 100ml crunchy peanut butter
250ml Greek yoghurt or 250ml coconut milk (I used coconut milk)
50 ml chicken stock
salt and pepper
coriander chopped for garnish

Place the paste ingredients into a food processor and blend to a paste.
Brown the chicken pieces in a little oil.
Remove from the pan and fry the onions until soft then add the cumin and the paste, cook for 1 minute.
Return the chicken to the pan and add the yoghurt or coconut milk, peanut butter and stock, cover with a lid and reduce the heat.
Simmer for 7 minutes until the chicken is cooked through, season and garnish with coriander.
Serve with basmati rice.

Optional: Add 30 - 50 ml chopped cashews.

Picture and recipe copyright by Tamsyn Wells