South African Bobotie Recipe
South African Bobotie is a well-known dish consisting of spiced ground meat baked with a golden egg-based topping. It’s a simple recipe to follow. But I tweaked my own recipe a little by using puff pastry and instead of making a large traditional dish as a centerpiece, I made individual ones.
Bitesize South African Bobotie
The egg mixture used in this recipe is simply based on egg and milk but to make it a bit more creamy, I added a little heavy cream. I would say the good thing, or best thing about this recipe, is that you can make it low carb and keto friendly by simply replacing the puff pastry sheets. A low carb dish is always good and a keto friendly dish is even better.
Bobotie or Babotie?
When we break it down, it reads different to how its spelt, Ba-Bo-Tea. It’s a comforting meal for you and your family full of tasty African flavor! In addition, the fact that we’ve made them into bitesize individual pieces, you’ll be snacking on them all day without the guilty feeling.
Where did Bobotie Come From?
Together, let’s travel back to the roots of Bobotie. Although the roots are not completely clear, we can be sure that the fusion of South African culture shines through, in color, fragrance, and taste!
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What Do You Love About Bobotie?
I personally love how Bobotie is such a filling dish for the family packed with complex flavors and textures guaranteed to be the spotlight of your table! We can say, it’s the dish that shines! Next to the Bobotie dish, you can put any side of your choice from white or yellow rice to pickles and chutney or even sliced bananas! But no matter what you make, the South African Bobotie dish will be the center piece.
To be honest, it’s so good, you might even forget to eat anything else!
Although the final dish looks difficult to make, Bobotie is actually quite simple… start by sautéing your minced meat with all the spices and the herbs and then topping with your egg mixture ready to bake in the oven.
Ingredients for South African Bobotie
- oil
- onions, finely chopped
- ginger paste (you can use ginger paste and avoid using ginger in this recipe)
- curry powder
- salt
- turmeric powder
- cayenne pepper
- bay leaves
- garlic cloves
- cinnamon
- ground beef (you can use ground chicken or ground turkey)
- milk
- heavy cream
- eggs
- Puff pastry sheets (optional)
Recipe for South African Bobotie
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a pan, add oil and onions, sauté them and add ginger paste, curry powder, salt, turmeric, cayenne pepper, cinnamon, and bay leaves.
- Add the garlic and ground beef together and cook until brown.
- Next, add the milk, heavy cream and eggs and mix together until all the ingredients are combined.
- Place the ground beef in a baking dish and pour the egg and milk mixture on top (or line puff pastry sheets in a muffin pan and add the ground beef and pour milk and egg mixture until all covered).
- Bake for 35 minutes or until puff pastry is cooked and the top is golden brown.
- Broil until the desired color is achieved
Little Muffin Tin Snacks.. Does it Get Any Better?
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, I used ground beef for this recipe, but it can totally be substituted for ground chicken or turkey.
South African Bobotie can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to a week. I wouldn’t recommended eating any leftovers after the week due to the cooked eggs in the recipe.
You can make the ground beef in advance so that once you are ready to make your dish, just prepare the egg and milk mixture and pour on top and bake.
Yes! The great thing about this recipe is that it can be easily modified to a low carb and keto friendly recipe by not using puff pastry sheets. You can just use heavy cream instead of milk for low carb and keto options.
You can serve anything you like with South African Bobotie for example, sliced bananas, yellow or white rice, pickles or chutney can all be served on the side.
No additional or extravagant equipment needed, simply, a baking dish! You can choose to cook the dish on the stove top by using a pan with a lid, keeping it covered on low heat until the egg mixture is cooked.
Yes, Bobotie is a traditional South African dish. It consists of curry-flavored ground beef and topped off with a milk and egg-based layer.
Other Recipes You Might Like:
- Chicken Tikka in Oven
- Bulgur Pilaf with Vermicelli and Chicken
- Baked Chicken leg and thigh Quarters
- Fava Bean Stew
- Beef and Vegetable Casserole Recipe
- Quick and Easy Creamy Butter Chicken Recipe
- BBQ Air Fryer Chicken Wings Recipe
- 3 Ingredient Vermicelli Rice In Instant Pot
- Chicken Grilled Kabobs with Vegetables
- Samosas from Scratch
If you’ve tried this recipe or any other recipe on Sourandsweets, we’d love to hear how it turned out! Also, don’t forget to rate this recipe and leave us a comment below!
South African Bobotie
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon oil
- 1/2 cup onions finely chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger paste (you can use ginger garlic paste and avoid using garlic in this recipe)
- 1 teaspoon curry powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cloves garlic grated
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2-3 bay leaves
- 1 1/2 cup ground beef
- 6 sheets puff pastry optional
- 1 cup milk
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 2 whole eggs
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a pan, add oil and onions, sauté them and add ginger paste, curry powder, salt, turmeric, cayenne pepper, cinnamon, and bay leaves.
- Add the garlic and ground beef together and cook until brown.
- Add milk, heavy cream and eggs, and mix until all are combined.
- Place the ground beef in a baking dish and pour the egg and milk mixture on top (or line puff pastry sheets in a muffin pan and add the ground beef and pour milk and egg mixture until all covered).
- Bake for 35 minutes until puff pastry is cooked and the top is golden brown.
- Broil until the desired color is achieved.
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