"This Time for Africa" at SIBF as Chef Zola Nene cooks up a storm

Cooking live in front of an excited audience during her session ‘Chef Zola's Table: A Live Culinary Experience’, the author of three cookbooks made the Bobotie meatball curry, a dish she hailed as one of South Africa’s many true culinary gems.

“Bobotie is originally a casserole with curried ground beef at the bottom and a thin layer of egg custard on top. But I have given it a twist by adding meatballs to highlight the amazing gastronomical diversity my country packs. And I have put in all the flavours to bring out the real taste of Africa through this dish,” said the Durban-based chef. 

“Make sure not to move the meatballs around too much or they will break,” she warned her audience as she nimbly crafted the heroes of her dish by mixing the meat mince with onion, coriander, eggs, sultanas and other flavourful ingredients.  

“Once done, set meatballs aside to add the onion and saute until softened before adding garlic, ginger paste, curry powder, tomato paste and chutney to stir and fry for a minute. Pour in the coconut milk, return the meatballs to the pan, check the seasoning and leave it to simmer for 10 minutes before topping it off with the coriander. Serve with bread or rice.”

Consisting of spiced minced meat baked with an egg-based topping, Bobotie is believed to have first appeared in a Dutch cookbook in 1609 before it was taken to South Africa and adopted by the Cape Malay community.

To prepare the dish at home, one would need 60ml milk, 125ml dried breadcrumbs, 500g beef mince, 1 egg, sultanas and fresh coriander – both 45ml and chopped, 30ml oil and salat and pepper to taste along with curry sauce.

At this year’s SIBF, Zola is promoting her third and latest cookbook Simply Seven Colours (2022), which celebrates the diverse cultural heritage of South Africans through the wonderful tradition of sharing meals.