Every South African household has an old hardcover recipe book in the kitchen with handwritten recipes. You know, your grandmother’s famous chicken roast is in there, with your aunt’s chocolate cake and the uncle from the Upington’s braaied fish and chips. A gem in the family that’s been passed on from generation to generation.
You’re not going to believe it, but we have one too! A compilation of our best braai recipes and tips over the last 25 years. No reason that you also must make the braai mistakes we did. Delicious, foolproof recipes just for you!
Jump to a section:
- Easy Outdoor breakfast recipes
- Sunday Lunch recipes
- Quick and easy braai recipes
- Braai beginner recipes
- Artisan braai recipes
- Braai dessert recipes
Easy outdoor breakfast recipes
Around a campfire, or even at home early on a Saturday morning. A one-pan tomatoey eggs dish made in 30 minutes. Check out this easy Shakshuka recipe made exclusively for us by An Earthen Life.
Sunday lunch recipes
A good ol’ South African favourite is potjie on a Sunday. Our Nr 3 pot simmering away on a fire brings a certain level of serenity to end off your week. Sitting around the fire with your people for 2-3 hours while the potjie develops in flavour. We say yes, please!
A delicious starter to keep the hunger under control while waiting for the potjie to cook. Pietman Geldenhuys’s sheep tails!
Using your cast iron pot for the first time?
Have no idea how to prep or clean it after you’ve had your delicious lunch? Check out our blog on everything you need to know to prep & clean your cast iron cookware.
Quick and easy braai recipes
Saturday nights are not for slaving away in the kitchen or behind the braai making something difficult and exotic. It’s for having an impulsive get together after the kids had rugby at school or catching up with mates after a full day of errands. You’re already tired but in the mood for a kuier, so let’s keep it easy and delicious!
Easy braai dessert
Finish off your braai with an easy dessert! Something everyone can make together, the only thing you need to do is start up your fire again. Check out Naqiyah Mayat’s delicious braaied s’mores recipe:
Braai beginner recipes
Everyone needs to start somewhere. It can be very daunting braaiing for the first time, especially if no one showed you what to do.
How to make a braai fire for beginners
- Start your fire. Easiest is to pack your wood in a ‘cage-like’ stack, starting with 2-3 logs at the bottom. Place your Megamaster Rhino Balls in the middle. Layer another 2-3 logs on top crosswise. Add another 2 layers of logs in the same manner. This method will ensure your fire has enough oxygen to light and keep burning.
- Light your fire. Add a few small twigs or pieces of bark in the middle of your wood stack, close to your firelighters. Once you light them, these pieces will catch fire first.
- Feed your fire with extra oxygen. Ever seen your fire starting to die, and the flame becoming small and fragile? Take a big breath and blow slowly from underneath your wood stack for an extra gush of oxygen. Don’t blow too extreme to extinguish the flame.
- Let the logs burn for 30-60minutes. The logs will start to breakdown and form hot coals.
- Use a shovel or poker to move some of the coals to the one side of your braai, and you’re good to go!
- Remember, ready hot coals are ashy white but extremely hot. If you blow slowly on them they will glo in embers of red and orange.
Caro Alberts’s Garlic and cheese cornbread platter
Meat ranger’s braai broodjie
Potato bake foil packets
Clean your braai
Right, now you’ve had a smashing braai, but you’re left to clean up. Try out our Braai Degreaser and Stainless Steel Cleaner with cleaning tools to make your job easier. Top tip, clean your braai while it’s still hot!
Artisan braai recipes
If you’re the braaier of the family, the one that’s braaied more chops, boerewors, and steaks than you can even imagine! Then it’s time to try something new - that requires more braai skill and knowledge of how to cook on fire or smoke.
Trying out smoking on your braai for the first time? Check out our Introduction to smoking blog with everything you need to know.
Braai dessert recipes
Ice cream and chocolate sauce is delicious, but what about a braaied dessert? Impress your guests by whipping up a dessert and braaiing it right on the fire. Trust us, you will be the talk of the night!
There you have it, our top 25 braai recipes and tips that we’ve learnt since 1997. A lifetime, but an honour to have come this far. Thank you for 25 years of togetherness, of eating and braaiing together. 25 years of building friendships, partnerships, and growing our brand to what it is today. Without you, we would have a gap at our dinner table. Cheers to 25 more years!