This is an absolute crowd pleaser and is a fantastic meal to create around a game day when you have your friends and family coming over.
This is a traditional South African potjie recipe, ideal for making over an open fire in a cast-iron pot. This version uses lamb, but beef, chicken, or game meat are also popular options. Potjie is all about slow cooking, layering ingredients, and letting flavours blend without stirring.
INGREDIENTS
• 1 kg lamb neck, chopped
• 2 large onions, sliced
• 3 large potatoes, cut into chunks
• 250 g mushrooms, sliced
• 250 g carrots, sliced
• 250 g baby marrows (zucchini)
• 250 g mini corn
• 50 g brown onion soup powder
• 2 sprigs chopped fresh rosemary
• 2 sprigs thyme
• 10 ml salt
• 3 beef stock sachets/cubes
• 250 ml hot water
• 250 ml red wine
• 125 ml evaporated (Ideal) milk
• 4 tbsp chutney
• 1 heaped tbsp medium curry powder
METHOD
1. Place your potjie pot over prepared coals and heat some oil.
2. Sauté onions until golden brown; remove and set aside.
3. Brown lamb neck in the pot, adding salt, rosemary, and thyme.
4. Once well browned, return the onions to the pot, add red wine, water, and beef stock. Simmer for 1 hour, 15 minutes.
5. Add potato chunks, carrots, and brown onion soup powder. Simmer for 45 minutes.
6. Add mushrooms, baby marrows, and mini corn. Cook for another 30 minutes.
7. Mix chutney and evaporated milk, add to the pot, and simmer for an additional 15 minutes.
8. Serve with rice, pap, or crusty bread. Enjoy your authentic South African potjie!
TIPS
• Layer vegetables according to cooking time; don’t stir during cooking.
• Use a mix of hearty root vegetables and softer ones like mushrooms and marrows for authentic texture and flavour.
• Cooking time should be slow—typically 2 to 3 hours—to tenderize the meat and deepen flavors.
• Traditional potjie is made over open coals, but a slow, steady heat source is key