Potjiekos

Potjiekos is an age old South African tradition that started way before I was even a figment of my parents amagination. To be more specific Potjiekos originated with the Voortrekkers, evolving as a stew made of venison and vegetables (if available), cooked in the potjie.

As trekkers hunted wild game, it was added to the pot. The large bones were included to thicken the stew. Each day when the wagons stopped, the pot was placed over a fire to simmer. New bones replaced old and fresh meat replaced meat eaten. Game included venison, poultry such as guinea fowl, wart hog, bushpig, rabbit and hare.

Today there are numerous recipe books and potjiekos chefs, each with their own “secret” ingredients for potjiekos. Several annual potjiekos competitions are held. The pots come verious sizes ranging from something you can only fit an apple into to pots you could probably fit a whole cow into (yes I am exadurating, but truth be told I have seen some pretty big ones). Aside from the traditional heavyweight iron pots aluminium potjiekos pots seem to a growing in popularity very quickly. They are weather resistant and also retain heat very well.

Here are some nice recipes for you to have a look at: Lapa Cooking Recipes.