Bobotie Recipe - South African Bobotie | Hank Shaw (2024)

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4.92 from 23 votes

By Hank Shaw

November 06, 2017 | Updated August 11, 2022

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This is South African bobotie, a casserole of venison or beef with curry and a baked custard on top. Sounds odd, but it tastes amazing. And this bobotie recipe is shockingly easy to make, as spicy as you want it to be, meaty, and a touch sweet. Rich. Comforting. I’m a believer.

Bobotie Recipe - South African Bobotie | Hank Shaw (2)

I know, I know. What is South African bobotie? It’s basically a beef or venison casserole. I am not normally a fan of casseroles, but this one’s different. Bobotie, pronounced buh-BOH-tee, is — amazingly — a dish with ancestry 2000 years old.

The Roman gourmand Apicius described a dish very much like a bobotie recipe in his De Re CoquinariaBobotie Recipe - South African Bobotie | Hank Shaw (3)calledPatinam ex lacte, which consisted of meat, pine nuts, some dried fruit and herbs, baked until done, then topped with a mix of milk and eggs, which was allowed to set.That’s pretty much what bobotie is, two millennia later.

Variations on this dish remained popular in Europe all the way into the 1600s. And, as it happened, that’s when the Dutch began carving out a trading empire. And part of that empire included the Cape of Good Hope, where South Africa’s Capetown is today.

What’s up with the funky name? Also look to the old Dutch empire. Most think it has something to do with Indonesia or Malaya in Southeast Asia, where variations on the word refer to curry spices. Both places were Dutch territories back in the 1600s, and it is believed they carried this dish to Capetown when it was founded in 1652.

Southeast Asia definitely has an influence on this casserole.

Bobotie Recipe - South African Bobotie | Hank Shaw (4)

What’s in South African Bobotie?

Any bobotie recipe needs curry powder (hot or mild), and one other sweet-sour thing, typically Major Grey’s or some other mango chutney, or tamarind paste. I’ve seen recipes with apricot or peach jam, too.

Mutton, beef or lamb are typically the meat of choice, but I ate it in South Africa in the 1990s made with kudu and eland, so I figured it would be fine with venison. You want it relatively lean, as the final topping of the whipped up eggs and cream adds quite a bit of richness.

My bobotie recipe includes a panade, a French term for a paste made from bread and milk; most recipes include this. You add bread to a bobotie for the same reason you would, say, a meatloaf or venison meatballs — to keep the mix tender. If you leave this out your casserole will be dry.

Some recipes include citrus leaves and raisins (mine does), and some leave them out.

How to Serve Bobotie?

I normally serve South African bobotie with rice or bread, and either a salad or some pickles. I’ve seen it served as part of a big spread with boerewors sausage, potato salad and cole slaw, green beans and the like.

You can make this bobotie recipe ahead of time and reheat it if you’d like. Covered, it will keep several days in the fridge. It does not freeze well, although you could freeze the main part of the casserole minus the topping of egg and cream.

(Not exactly what you’re looking for? Here are more recipes for deer burger or ground venison. )

4.92 from 23 votes

Bobotie

This is one of the national dishes of South Africa. You can make bobotie with any ground meat, but I typically use deer burger. You can make this as spicy or mild as you want. It reheats well, too, and will keep in the fridge for a week.

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Course: Main Course

Cuisine: South African

Servings: 8 people

Author: Hank Shaw

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour hour

Total Time: 1 hour hour 50 minutes minutes

Ingredients

  • 3 slices white bread
  • 2 cups milk
  • 2 large onions, chopped (about 3 cups)
  • 3 tablespoons butter
  • 2 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 2 pounds ground venison
  • Salt
  • 2 tablespoons mild curry powder
  • 2 teaspoons garam masala, or ½ teaspoon ground clove and 1 1/2 teaspoons ground allspice
  • 1/3 cup chopped cilantro or parsley, loosely packed
  • Cayenne pepper to taste (I use 1 teaspoon)
  • 2 tablespoons tamarind paste, mango chutney or peach jam
  • 3 tablespoons golden raisins (optional)
  • 3 citrus leaves or bay leaves
  • Juice of a lemon or lime

TOPPING

  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 2 large eggs

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 325°F. Soak the bread in 2 cups of milk.

  • Cook the onions in the butter over medium heat until they’re soft, about 6 to 8 minutes. Sprinkle some salt over them as they cook. Add the garlic and the venison and brown well. Salt this as it cooks, too. Break apart the ground venison as it cooks so it looks like taco meat.

  • When it’s pretty much browned, add the curry powder, tamarind and all the remaining spices and herbs, and the raisins if using. Cover the pan, add the lemon or lime juice, and let this cook for a few minutes.

  • Squeeze out the milk from the bread and mash it into the mixture. Turn off the heat. Move the mix into a casserole dish and press it down well.

  • Beat the eggs and cream together and pour over the casserole. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the egg mixture is set and turning golden.

Nutrition

Calories: 442kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 30g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Cholesterol: 190mg | Sodium: 226mg | Potassium: 633mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 785IU | Vitamin C: 3.1mg | Calcium: 153mg | Iron: 4.6mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Tried this recipe? Tag me today!Mention @huntgathercook or tag #hankshaw!

Categorized as:
African, Featured, Recipe, Venison

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About Hank Shaw

Hey there. Welcome to Hunter Angler Gardener Cook, the internet’s largest source of recipes and know-how for wild foods. I am a chef, author, and yes, hunter, angler, gardener, forager and cook. Follow me on Instagram and on Facebook.

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Bobotie Recipe - South African Bobotie | Hank Shaw (2024)

FAQs

What are the main ingredients in bobotie? ›

Which country invented bobotie? ›

Bobotie is a traditional South African dish that consists of a curry flavoured minced meat, topped off with an egg and milk based layer. Although its origins are not completely clear, we do know that it is a dish that beautifully demonstrates the fusion of cultures in South Africa with a colourful and fragrant result.

What is the meaning of Bobotie? ›

(bʊˈbʊtɪ ) noun. a South African dish consisting of curried mincemeat with a topping of beaten egg baked to a crust.

Who eats bobotie in South Africa? ›

In South Africa, bobotie was adopted and adapted by the Cape Malay community – many of whom were slaves and labourers with roots in modern-day Indonesia – with the addition of curry powder, as well as the spices typically being transported by the Dutch East India Company from Indonesia to the Netherlands.

What is South Africa favorite dish? ›

Bobotie. Another dish thought to have been brought to South Africa by Asian settlers, bobotie is now the national dish of the country and cooked in many homes and restaurants. Minced meat is simmered with spices, usually curry powder, herbs and dried fruit, then topped with a mixture of egg and milk and baked until set ...

Do South Africans say chips or fries? ›

Chips are a fatter version of french fries, and we use both terms in South Africa. Typically we eat chips, unless we order at MacDonald's or Burger King, because that's American so that's what they call it.

Which culture do bobotie dishes come from? ›

Bobotie is a traditional South African dish that is considered one of the most iconic. Originating from the Cape Malay community, this recipe showcases the rich culinary heritage of South Africa. This flavour-packed dish features curried minced beef infused with dried fruit and topped with a creamy egg custard.

What is the South African dish smiley? ›

A Smiley is a whole barbequed sheep's head with its lips bared in a sick charred grin, thus the name Smiley.

What is a fun fact about Bobotie? ›

Bobotie is a baked mincemeat dish and one of the more recognizable foods to come out of South Africa. It's commonly believed that Bobotie was first derived from the Javanese dish Botok, as Dutch colonists brought the dish to South Africa from their settlements in Indonesia (née Dutch East Indies) in the 17th century.

What goes with bobotie? ›

It is almost always served with "yellow rice" however; long-grain cooked with turmeric and often raisins, though it would also be nice, I think, with mashed sweet potato or roasted squash, and a glass of robust red like a local cabernet sauvignon, whose smoky fruit pairs well with the sweet gaminess of the lamb.

What do South Africans call sandwiches? ›

sarmie, a South African English word for "sandwich"

What type of dried meat is a favourite of most South Africans? ›

Beef biltong - traditional South African Food

Biltong is a South African classic. It is air-cured meat immersed in vinegar and spices. Various types of meat are used to make biltong but it is most commonly made from beef because of its widespread availability and lower costs.

What meat is Bobotie made of? ›

Bobotie is a South African dish similar to meatloaf but so much better. Ground beef is seasoned with slightly sweet curry, topped with a milk and egg custard, and baked until golden brown. It's delicious!

What are the main ingredients of African meals? ›

Local types of pumpin, sweet potato, various types of cassava, millet, sorghum, squashes, and rice. In a lot of countries ground starch - maize, sorghum, millet, cassava is cooked into what can best be described as a thick porridge.

What are native South African ingredients? ›

Of the 119 commercialised African plants, 16 are indigenous to southern Africa: these are gum Arabic (acacia gum), baobab, buchu, waterblommetjie, rooibos tea, sour fig, jelly melon (Cucumis metuliferus), honeybush tea, finger millet, palm wine (Hyphaene coriacea), pearl millet, Livingstone or African potato, marula, ...

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