Braai Love Being Served style (vegan Sosaties on Krummel pap)
We have our last day of this experimental African cuisine made vegan week, and something has been missing so far … SOSATIES. South African (apricot) kebabs.
These traditional South African skewers, particularly popular in Cape Malay cuisine, are marinated in a fragrant mixture of spices, including curry powder, turmeric, ginger, and apricot jam, often interspersed with dried apricots and bell peppers, before they are grilled or braaied (barbecued) until the meat is tender and slightly charred.
A fee words about Cape Malay: This refers to an ethnic group in South Africa, the Cape Malay people, descendants of Southeast Asian slaves, political exiles, and convicts brought to the Cape of Good Hope by Dutch colonists in the 17th and 18th centuries. Over time, they developed a rich culinary tradition that blends flavors and techniques from their Southeast Asian origins with local South African ingredients. Cape Malay cuisine is characterized by its use of aromatic spices, such as cinnamon, cloves, and turmeric, along with sweet and savory combinations, often incorporating dried fruits and chutneys. Sosaties, therefore, are a hallmark of this cuisine, showcasing the Cape Malay sweet and sour, spicyful influence on South African cuisine.
Here, we would like to introduce you to new way of making braaid sosaties. As we have no barbecue here where we live, I challenged myself to still veganize these typical components of a barbecue South African style, using the oven that we have. The soy skewers turned out wonderfully crunchy outside while keeping their moisture inside.
I flavorfully combined them with a traditional braai side dish, Krummel Pap (crumbly white corn meal porridge), and some marinated oven grilled butternut squash slices. The recommended dried apricots I simply replaced with fresh pineapple – wonderful! Accompanied by a fine and super quick barbecue sauce using orange juice as a sweetener, there was really nothing that we would have been missing in today’s lunch!
Enjoy this lovely blend of exotic, traditional, South African and lovebeingserved flavors!
Braai Love Being Served style (vegan Sosaties)
Equipment
- 6 skewers
Ingredients
For the skewers
- 3/4 cup soy chunks (or 1 block tofu/tempeh, cut in cubes, if you cannot digest tvp products well)
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 4 tbsp fresh orange juice
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp vinegar
- 2 tbsp agave nectar
- 1/2 tsp whole or ground cumin
- 1/2 tbsp dried herbs
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp fresh ginger, chopped
- 1 handful zucchini, cut in discs, then quartered
- 3 champignons, quartered
- 3/4 cup fresh pineapple, cut in cubes
For the Krummel pap
- 1 1/4 cup water
- 1 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup white maize meal
- 2 tbsp vegan butter
For the butternut squash
- 4 or more halved slices butternut squash (ca 1/2 cm thick)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp dried herbs
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
For the quick bbq sauce
- 4 tbsp tomato sauce
- 2 tbsp fresh orange juice
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 1/2 tsp dijon mustard
- 1/4 tsp curry powder
Instructions
Marinate the Skewers
- If using tofu or tempeh, skip this step!Soak the soy chunks in hot or warm tap water for 20 mins.
- In the meantime, mix the oil, juice, soy sauce and spices together.
- Drain the soy chunks and squeeze out any excess water! Combine the soy chunks, the zucchini, the champignons and the pineapple with the marinade. Let marinate for an hour.
Prepare the pap
- Bring the water and salt to a boil.
- Add the maize meal into the middle of the water in order to get a sort of heap. Turn down the flame to minimum, cover the pot with a lid and let cook for 20 minutes. Don’t touch it!
- Now quickly check if the bottom is starting to burn. If all is good, let the pap be the way it is, replace the lid and continue to cook on lowest heat. If it has started to get too sticky at the bottom, softly stir with a fork, add a few tbsp more water, cover again and continue to cook.
- After approximately 30 minutes in total, the pap should be ready. Take off the heat, lid on, and set aside.
Marinate the squash
- While the pap is cooking, marinate the squash in the oil mixed with the spices, herbs and salt. Set aside.
Prepare the skewers and grilling
- Preheat the oven (grill function).
- Thread the marinated ingredients onto the skewers, alternating between soy chunks, pineapple, champignons, and zucchini.
- Place the skewers onto a baking tray lined with baking paper. Place the squash next to them. Drizzle with half of the excess marinade as well as the squash oil marinade.
- Grill until nicely browned (approximately 25-35 mins).
Prepare the bbq sauce
- Mix all ingredients together.If you wish, you can add the marinade leftover. See that there are no rests of soy chunks in it!
Assemble
- In a pan, melt the butter and fry the pap for a few minutes.
- Serve the skewers and squash on the pap, sprinkled with the sauce.