Lockdown meals for sharing with the family

While you sit and plan your next family feast, consider these lekker, classically South African recipes with a twist, conjured up by celebrity chef Lentswe Bhengu, featuring Bull Brand Corned Meat as the star ingredient.

Mamma's Vetkoek stuffed with Chakalaka Corned Meat

Nothing says comfort food better than a warm vetkoek and with the addition of chakalaka corned meat, you’re in for a real treat.

INGREDIENTS (Serves 6)

Filling

• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• ½ tsp cayenne pepper





• 2 cans Bull Brand Chakalaka Corned Meat
• 2 tbsp barbeque spice
• 2 cups chopped vegetables (use whatever you have in the fridge - celery, beans, sweet potato, carrot) OR 2 cups drained Rhodes Quality Mixed Vegetable
• salt and p epper to taste

Vetkoek

• 1kg flour, plus extra for dusting
• 120g sugar
• 1 10g sachet instant yeast
• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 tbsp Salt
• 1L warm water, keep 1 cup extra (if dough is too stiff)  
• vegetable oil, for deep frying

 
METHOD

Chakalaka Corned Meat filling:

Heat the oil, in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Season with salt and pepper. Add the onion, cayenne pepper and garlic and sauté until the onion softens. Add the corned meat, breaking it up with a spoon. Cook for 5 minutes until browned. Stir in the barbeque spice and cook for one minute. Add chopped vegetables and peas, stirring until cooked through. Check seasoning.

Vetkoek:

Mix the flour, sugar, yeast, oil, salt and warm water. Add extra water only if necessary. Knead thoroughly, then allow to prove for 30 minutes until double in original size (this will take longer on a cold day). Dust a tray with flour. Scoop up handfuls of dough and roll into balls. Place the vetkoek on the tray and allow to rise until doubled in size. Heat the oil in a deep saucepan. Deep-fry a few vetkoek at a time (do not a lot of balls at the same time). Keep turning the balls after every 2 minutes. Check the vetkoek after 10 minutes – they should have risen to the top of the oil. Drain on kitchen paper until ready to serve.

Gogo’s Cottage Pie

A popular dish, with a Gogo twist, that will serve spoonfuls of happiness for the whole family.

INGREDIENTS (Serves 4-6)

• 2 cans Bull Brand Corned Meat
• 1 pocket potatoes, cleaned with skins on (for mash)
• 2 onions, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 red pepper, chopped
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 15ml Worcestershire sauce
• 1tbsp mixed herbs
• 1 cup frozen mixed veggies
• 3 carrots, grated
• 1 tsp baking powder (optional)
• 100ml milk
• salt and white pepper to taste

METHOD

In a large frying pan over medium to high heat, sauté onions, garlic and pepper till soft. Season with salt and pepper. Add the corned meat and fry off until well combined, adding salt, pepper, mixed herbs, tomato paste, tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, mixing in well. Reduce the heat to medium. Add the carrots and simmer till soft. Turn off the heat, add the mixed veggies, stir and close the lid. Allow the veggies to cook within the residual heat.

For the mash, cut the potatoes in quarters. Add salt to taste and the potatoes to a pot of cold water. Bring the pot to the boil and cook the potatoes till soft. Drain the liquid with strainer and mash the potatoes with a masher. Add the milk. Add the baking powder to give the mash a fluffier texture.

To assemble, preheat the grill. Lightly grease an oven dish. Layer the mince at the bottom of the pan, patting it down gently with a spoon and levelling it out. Add the mash on top of the mince and spread out evenly (optional – you can pipe the mash using a piping bag). Put the pie in the oven and cook till the mash is lightly browned.

 
Mini Meat and Pap Tarts

These lekker pap tarts combine two of our country’s favourite dishes – pap and meat. You can bake them as individual servings or as one large hearty tart.

INGREDIENTS (Serves 6-8)

• 1L water
• 500ml (2 cups) maize meal
• salt to taste
• 1 large onion, cut into thin wedges or slices
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• sunflower or olive oil
• 1 x 300g can Bull Brand Corned Meat, cut into small cubes
• 10 black olives, halved
• salt and pepper to taste
• 3 large eggs
• 125ml (½ cup) milk
• 10ml (2 tsp) dried thyme or parsley
• 250ml (1 cup) grated cheddar cheese
• 5ml (1 tsp) prepared mustard

METHOD

Mix the water and maize meal in a saucepan, season with salt to taste and bring to the boil while stirring. Reduce heat, cover and simmer on very low for about 45 minutes or until cooked, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and allow the mixture to cool. Meanwhile, prepare the filling by frying the onion in oil until golden and soft. Add the garlic and can of Bull Brand Corned Meat and fry until the meat is lightly browned then stir in the olives, cover and set aside. Once the maize pap has cooled, whisk in 1 egg and then press the mixture into the bottom and sides of 6 to 8 small, loose-bottom tart pans or one large pie dish. Spoon the meat filling into the tart bases. Whisk the 2 remaining eggs with the rest of the ingredients and pour into the tarts. Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C for 30 – 40 minutes, or until the fillings are just set. Serve with salad.

Crispy Bull Brand Pizza

Win your family over with this yeast-free, thin-and-crispy crust pizza. It’s easy to make and easy to love.

INGREDIENTS (Makes 2 pizzas)

• 1 x 410g can Rhodes Quality tomato purée
• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• a few basil leaves, torn into smaller pieces
• salt and pepper to taste
• 160ml (⅔ cup) ice-cold water
• 60ml (4 tbsp) olive oil
• 500ml (2 cups) cake flour
• 5ml (1t) salt
• extra olive oil for brushing
• 500ml (2 cups) grated or sliced Mozzarella cheese
• 1 small red onion, coarsely sliced or chopped
• 125g mushrooms, sliced or chopped
• 125ml (½ cup) each black and green olives, pitted
• 1 small red pepper, diced
• 1 small green pepper, diced
• cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 1 x 300g can Bull Brand Corned Meat, cut into small cubes or thin slices
• salt, freshly ground black pepper and dried origanum

METHOD

For the sauce, combine the tomato purée, garlic and basil and heat and set aside to cool. For the bases, mix the water and 60ml oil. Place the flour and mix until smooth. Let the dough rest for 15 minutes then divide it in two and roll out each piece thinly. Place on greased baking sheets and brush with extra oil. Bake in a preheated oven at 230°C for 5 – 8 minutes or until cooked. Spread the bases with sauce, cover with cheese and arrange the rest of the ingredients on top. Season with salt, pepper and origanum and bake for 5 minutes or until the cheese melts then slice and serve.

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