Grilling, a barbecue or a shishanyama are all names synonymous with a braai, the latter being the widely used here at home even though it is not of our native tongue. Never the less an occasion like this is a meat galore spectacular where different types of foods meet the open, smoky fire. Bringing it closer to home, just so to put some originality to it I call it “Ko Pesong.” I hope this catches on and every braai session in Botswana is called as such. It’s a given, braai always promises meat, beef particularly and quite frankly if you’re hosting it and fall short of meat it is deemed a failure. Who would want that? Variety being the spice of life, an introduction of new dishes can go a long way in helping your braai session a success. Personally I think the classics should always be there and by that I mean pap and meat; chakalaka is another mainstay but it can be tweaked with a bit to be unique. These twists I keep talking about are grilled pizza, BBQ beans and beer can chicken. These are guaranteed winner dishes that will sure impress.
For starters there is the pizza. We all love it especially the kids, adults too and it goes down very well with a few cold ones. Grilled pizza is what I am looking at and it is not your conventional pizza you normally order in the sense that the shape and way they are prepared is quite different. Most importantly is the taste since with grilled pizza it is cooked on the braai so the smoke a different flavor. Everyone can make pizza, preparing well in time is essential since when making the bread the dough needs to rise. Top it with any toppings you fancy. The BBQ beans too are flavoured by the smoke, it’s more like a smokey chakalaka but since you could add bacon too it becomes more savory side dish and in itself it can be a meal. My personal favourite has to be the beer can chicken. Lets admit it, chicken is the one meat we all hate to braai because it burns quickly before it cooks through so at times if not most of the times it comes out under cooked. The thing with chicken is it needs medium heat and has to be covered in order to cook perfectly. I am talking of cooking it whole since I am not a big fan on cutting through the meat just so as to allow heat penetration. It tends not to hold well on the bone, presentation wise it can be a disaster. So with beer can chicken you take half a can of beer, place it in the cavity of your chicken. This helps to keep it moist while it cooks. A kettle braai is best to use when you cook it like this.
Now these are twists to the peso you should do next time. They promise to add choice, so there is a little something for everyone. For more on these recipes go online and search for them but I want us to talk everything that is food so my e-mail is [email protected] or lets talk on facebook @ Allan Moroka.
By;
Allan Moroka
