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It’s Heritage month, so here our best recipes perfected by SA’s Ultimate Braai Masters

Like you needed a reminder that September 24th is heritage day.

Well here is your reminder. We know South Africans will be celebrating and salivating over the braai this year so here are our fave braai recipes prepared by five of the Ultimate Braai Master winners.

1. Rooibos Marinade Chicken

Elaine Ensor-Smith
image of Elaine from The Ultimate Braai Master SA

INGREDIENTS

  • 400 ml very strong Rooibos
  • 50ml lemon juice
  • Chopped garlic (optional)
  • 8 filleted chicken thighs or whole chicken cut into 8 pieces

METHOD

  • Soak chicken overnight in marinade.
  • Remove half the marinade, add 3 teaspoons of sugar and a squirt of honey to it.
  • Place in a thick bottomed small pot and simmer on the coals or on the grid. Stir until it thickens. Set aside to cool.
  • Once chicken is done, baste it with the reduction and pop it back on the fire for a few seconds a side to seal it, which will add a rich colour and taste to the meat.

2. Braaied Snoek with Rooibos and Tamarind Glaze

Stephen Mandes

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 large onion
  • 30ml olive oil
  • 5 Rooibos tea bags
  • 10g fresh thyme
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 80g tamarind paste
  • 50ml Worcestershire sauce
  • 120g brown sugar
  • 10g salt
  • 10g freshly ground black pepper
  • 10g chopped red chillies
  • 350ml Water (300ml for glaze-50ml for corn flour slurry)
  • 15g corn flour

METHOD

  • Sauté the onion in the olive oil till softened. Then add the garlic, chillies and thyme and cook for five minutes.
  • Add in the water, Rooibos tea bags, and bring them to the boil. Once the Rooibos tea has released its flavour, remove them from the pot.
  • Add in the sugar, salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce and tamarind paste. Bring this to the boil.
  • Prepare the slurry with water and corn flour. While the liquid is boiling whisk in the corn flour mixture. Continue to cook until the consistency covers the back of a spoon.

PREP THE SNOEK - QUICK ROOIBOS CURE

  • 1 whole fresh snoek
  • 1 large onion, 1 large carrot, 50g coriander leaves, 6 Rooibos tea bags, 100g sugar, 50g salt
  • Blend all the ingredients together to make a kind of a paste.
  • Introduce the snoek to the cure. In a large enough tray, pat down a third of the cure, then place the snoek on top of that and cover with the rest of the cure.
  • This snoek needs to soak up the flavours for about an hour and a half. Rinse off the cure thoroughly and pat it dry – it should be smelling delicious!
  • Once the glaze and snoek are ready, get the coals and grid ready. Remember that snoek is delicate, so we don't want to dry it out. The best way to keep it juicy is to braai it over low coals, to turn it often and to glaze it every time. It should take you about 25 minutes to braai the snoek.

3. Rooibos-infused Smoked Trout with Beetroot & Feta side salad

Chanel Marais

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 large fresh trout, filleted
  • 1 deep baking tray, lined with tinfoil
  • 1 orange, sliced in half and used as trivets for the cooling rack to rest on top.
  • 1 lemon, zest placed on top of the trout
  • Fresh dill – chopped up finely
  • ¼ cup of uncooked rice (to smoke the fish)
  • ¼ cup Rooibos tea leaves (about 5-6 teabags)
  • ¼ cup brown sugar
  • 1 x small cooling rack, lightly greased and heavy duty tinfoil, to seal.

METHOD

  • Add rice, Rooibos tea leaves and brown sugar to the bottom of your lined baking dish.
  • Place the cooling rack over the rice, lay the fish on top, season with salt and pepper and place the baking dish over low heat.
  • Leave on the heat until the rice mixture starts to smoke and sugar begins to melt.
  • Seal the dish tightly with tinfoil (try have the tinfoil not touch the fish), leave over the heat for another 1-2 minutes, then turn off the heat and leave the fish to smoke for 8-10 minutes or until tender.
  • Remove the fish, season with lemon zest, salt and pepper, and dill on top.

SIDE SALAD AND DRESSING

  • Beetroot – pickled and cut into small cubes. Feta – crumbled Baby spinach. Red onion – finely sliced. Basil leaves – washed and crushed. Sesame seeds
  • Mix all ingredients together and add in dressing below and serve with smoked trout.
  • Salad dressing: 1 tbs honey. ½ lime juice. 2x tbs red wine vinegar.
  • Mix all ingredients and place into side dish salad.

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