With Heritage Day just around the corner, we celebrate the uniquely South African Potjie, a friendly food which is enjoyed by rich and poor, young and old, needing only one’s imagination to conjure up the ingredients.
There is something so “gesellig” about sitting around a fire, with good friends and family, waiting for the Potjie to cook, sharing stories and enjoying each others company in the outdoors.
Potjiekos (literally meaning pot food) has been part of South Africa’s culture for many centuries – since the days of the first settlement at the Cape when food was cooked in a black cast-iron potjie pot hanging from a chain over the kitchen fire.
It has become a bit of a tradition in the deep south too as we gear up for annual Heritage Day Potjie Cook-Off at the Farm Village in Noordhoek. Every year, 10 teams go head-to-head in fighting for the coveted title.
The fires are going from early morning & the competitors begin cooking from 10am. After 3pm, the judges Franck Dangereux & celebrity chef Pete Goffe-Wood begin their tasting with the winner being announced at 4:30pm.
Come down and join in the fun. Enjoy some great live music in the late afternoon & taste a wide range of deliciously diverse pots. For just R100, you can buy a tasting cup and sample all of the potjies on offer. All money raised goes to a local charity. This is a fabulously fun day out for the whole family.
You can find out more about the event on our Calendar
In the meantime, get your Potjie on! Need some inspiration? Try this Potjie Smoorsnoek recipe to get those creative culinary juices flowing.
Potjie smoorsnoek
Ingredients:
- 1 kg salted (or smoked) snoek
- 60ml cooking oil
- 2-3 large onions, sliced
- 6 medium potatoes, thickly sliced
- 500g tomatoes, skinned and coarsely chopped
- 1 small chilli, seeded and chopped
- 1 small bunch sorrel or 15ml lemon juice
Method:
Cover snoek with cold water. Soak for a few hours or overnight depending on how salty the snoek is. Discard the water and coarsely flake the fish, discarding bones. Heat oil in the potjie, add onions and saute until golden brown. Remove onion and set aside. Place potato slices on the bottom of the potjie. Spoon onion on top and follow with flaked fish Spoon tomato and remaining ingredients over. Cover with lid and simmer slowly for 30-45 minutes or until potatoes are tender and the fish is cooked. Serve with rice.
Serves 6