Bobotie Vegetarian

Introduction – A truly fusion dish stemmed from all the different cultures of Cape cuisine has to be ‘Bobotie’. This spicy legume pie is truly a unique flavour of Cape cuisine. The word ‘Bobotie’ pronounced ‘bu-boo-ty’, originates from the Javanese dish called ‘Bobotok’. This Java heritage contributes to the spice of dish namely chili, cinnamon and cloves. A thin egg custard is cooked on top which originates from the European influence during this era. Its baked in the oven and served with yellow rice and seasonal accompaniments. This recipe is a combination of Far East and European cultures interwoven and resulting in an everyday Cape cuisine inspired dish, eaten regularly by generations of South Africans.

 Recipe

Serves 4

Ingredients 

45ml vegetable oil

2 cans of beans drained (lentils, black beans or mixed)

1 large onion diced

1 tablespoon chopped garlic

1 tablespoon chopped ginger

2.5 teaspoon salt

45 ml lemon juice

30 ml brown sugar

5 ml curry powder

10ml turmeric

2ml chili powder (optional)

50ml chopped raisons

250ml diced tomatoes 

50ml chopped thyme

250ml of bread crumbs 

Custard Ingredients 

300ml milk

2 eggs

5ml salt

3 bay leaves (optional)

Method

  1. Sauté the onions in the oil, add the garlic and ginger, sauté for 1 minute.

  2. Add remaining ingredients except the custard ingredients, bread crumbs and thyme.

  3. Simmer uncovered until mixture is dry but still moist (approx. 20minutes).

  4. Stir in the bread crumbs and thyme. Spoon into a greased oven proof casserole dish.

  5. Beat the custard ingredients except the bay leaves until combined.

  6. Pour over the pie mixture. Place the bay leaves on top slightly submerged.

  7. Bake at 350 F until custard is set (approx. 1 hour minutes).

  8. Serve with saffron infused rice and sambals (vegetable or fruit relishes).