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Bobotie is a South African casserole with a curried ground beef at the bottom, and a thin layer of egg custard on top.
This version comes from my friend Rebecca Bourhill of RebeccaBourhill.wordpress.com, who shared her delicious recipe (it’s actually her grandmother’s recipe – how cool is that!?) with me as part of her South African contribution to my upcoming Taste Of The Place cookbook.
If you would like to learn a bit more about South African cuisine, hop over to Rebecca’s article all about it at A Taste Of South Africa.
A bit of bobotie history
Bobotie’s roots in South Africa date back to the 17th century. Dutch traders set up camp in the area that is now Cape Town as a stopping point on their journeys back and forth to Indonesia. The traders brought spices, cooking techniques, and recipes with them. While the specifics are a bit vague, it is thought by some that the original bobotie recipe came from Indonesia and was adapted to fit the available ingredients.
Today many consider bobotie to be the national dish of South Africa, and it has become popular on menus featuring South African cuisine all over the world.
Notes on the bobotie recipe
In my opinion, it is the curry powder and the bay leaves that impact the flavor of this dish most – so use the best quality that you can. You will see links to my favorites in the recipe and in the resource box below.
I like to prepare and bake this recipe in a cast iron skillet – it can go from stovetop to oven, and even look beautiful on the table. Plus it makes for less dishes to wash later!
- 3 slices of bread
- 1 cup + ½ cup milk, divided
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 large onions, roughly chopped
- 4 teaspoons medium curry powder
- 1 teaspoon dried herbs (whatever you’ve got around – oregano, basil, marjoram, etc.)
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1½ pound ground beef
- ½ cup fruit chutney
- 1 tablespoon apricot jam
- Zest and juice of one medium lemon, divided
- 4 teaspoons tomato paste
- Salt and pepper
- 2 large eggs
- 4 bay leaves
- Preheat your oven to 350°F.
- Soak the bread in 1 cup of the milk.
- Heat the olive oil in a wide skillet set over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the onions, and cook until soft.
- Add the curry powder, mixed herbs, cumin, turmeric and garlic, and stirring constantly, allow to cook for a minute or two until the garlic is soft.
- Add the ground beef, and cook, stirring frequently to break up any big chunks, until browned.
- Once the beef is browned, remove the skillet from the heat, and stir in the chutney, apricot jam, all the lemon zest, half the lemon juice, tomato paste, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well, give it a taste, and add more lemon juice, salt, and pepper as desired. It should be delightfully zingy!
- Squeeze the milk from the bread, reserving the milk for later, and smooshing and tearing the bread into small pieces. Mix the bread into the beef mixture, and spread evenly into an oven proof dish.
- Strain the milk that has come from the bread, and add the remaining ½ cup of milk. Beat in the eggs, and season with ¼ teaspoon salt and pepper to taste. Pour this over the meat, and decoratively scatter the bay leaves on top.
- Bake, uncovered, at 350°F for 45 minutes, or until golden brown.
I like to prepare and bake this recipe in a cast iron skillet - it can go from stovetop to oven, and even look beautiful on the table. Plus it makes for less dishes to wash later!
Recipe shared by Rebecca Bourhill
I am a student, and in my spare time there is no better place to be than in the kitchen and around food. Being welcomed into many top South African Restaurants for work experience has expanded my knowledge about food.
As a Jamie Oliver Food Revolution Ambassador I keep my recipes homey and simple to follow, to encourage people to cook from scratch. Whether I go out for a weekend away or an outing to our green grocer, it inspires me to create a new dish.
Learn more about Rebecca at RebeccaBourhill.wordpress.com
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I loved this recipe. Having lived in SA for a few years, it brought back memories. I served it with a simple salad and everyone loved it. I could have eaten the whole thing myself. Thank you.
Thank YOU, Susan! I’m glad you enjoyed! I know the feeling – I sometimes think I could eat the whole dish myself, too!
This is a great recipe, we tried an interesting variation in South Africa last year. Bobotie wrapped in pancakes with curry sauce, amazing!
What an interesting idea – pancake wrapped bobotie! I imagine it was amazing! Thanks for sharing!
Our host prepared this for our book club discussion of Born a Crime and it was delicious! I had forgotten this but one whiff reminded me I had loved this dish on a trip to South Africa 20 years ago. Spot on!
Hooray! I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Carol! That fragrance is amazing, isn’t it?!
We made this for the first time for my husband’s coworker. A young man of 29, he is originally from South Africa and as he described his country and its dishes, I could here a bit of homesickness in his voice. My husband and I followed the recipe and it came out beautifully. The best compliment we received was that when he smelled the food, it smelled like his Mom’s dish and that every bite was exactly as he remembered. Your recipe in our hands made it a special day for him.
I love this story! Thank you for sharing! I’m so glad you and your South African guest enjoyed. <3
The bobootie I know uses red wine, equal quantities of pounded pork and mutton, almonds, cumen,onion, garlic, marjoram, bay leaves, milk and eggs. The meat is soaked overnight in the red wine, then placed in a casserole that has been lined with butter, cumin seeds and almonds. The meat is then placed in the casserole after being mixed together with the chopped onion and garlic, bay leaves and marjoram, cumin plus extra chopped almonds and sufficient salt. The casserole goes into a very hot oven until the meat expands, approx. about 10 minutes, then the heat is immediately reduced and the casserole mixture cooked completely in a moderate oven. After about an hour the milk mixed with the beaten egg(s) is poured over the meat and cooked for another 30 minutes or so.(This step may be carried out immediately the meat has expanded but is better later.). Once cooked, extra almonds are added on top and then the bobootie is served with rice (preferably whole grain) and side dishes of hot chutney (mango), hot sauce made from dried apricots (plus brandy if desired), sliced bananas (also powdered with nutmeg) and fresh grated coconut. All is served with a full-bodied dry red wine preferably the same wine used for the overnight soaking.
This sounds like an amazing recipe, Marianne! I may have to try your version one of these days. Thanks for sharing!
Sounds stunning……
Marco, Bobotie is one of my favorite meals to make – so much flavor and so satisfying! And Marianne’s version sounds divine!
Delicious A taste of home
I’m so glad you enjoyed, Venice!
Delicious, I did however add a cooking apple and honey instead pf apricot jam. Thank you for the rest xx
What a great idea, Claragh! Thanks for sharing!
Delicious and the house smells wonderful with the aroma of this dish!
Hooray! I’m glad you liked it. It is certainly one of my favorite dishes!