Growing up in Durban I didn\u2019t eat much tomato bredie. It\u2019s not because I didn\u2019t like it, but more because bredie is a Cape Town thing. It was only when I moved to the Cape that I began to appreciate this slow cooked stew, with its silky tomato sauce and fall off the bone meat.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
In traditional Cape Malay cooking there are many types of bredies, but for me the lamb tomato bredie is the king. It\u2019s the perfect balance of meaty goodness, aromatic spices, and sweet and tangy tomato sauce. In my opinion a great bredie takes time to come together but the effort is worth every bite.<\/p>\n
To make a kickass lamb bredie, the kind that reminds me of The Far Side\u2019s<\/em> \u2018Mary had a little lamb\u2019 comic (Google it), I\u2019m using lamb neck. The neck is another one of those cuts that was seen as undesirable for a long time. It\u2019s fatty, tough and it takes a long time to cook down. But like so many things in life, patience has its rewards.<\/p>\n The neck has some of the best marbling on the lamb and it\u2019s full of collagen that breaks down during cooking to create a luscious sauce. After a few hours cooking, the meat just melts off the bone, and the amount of flavour that\u2019s packed into neck is hard to beat.<\/p>\n There are many ways to make a tomato bredie, and I\u2019m sure mine is not entirely traditional but who cares? I want big flavour and I also want to incorporate my favourite flavour \u2013 braai. To get this I\u2019m sealing the lamb over a seriously hot fire to build up a caramelised flavour crust. If you\u2019re feeling lazy you could do this in a pan but ask yourself this \u2013 what would Mary prefer? The Roma tomatoes are also getting the braaied treatment to give them a smokey, charred flavour. You could use regular tomatoes but I like Romas. They\u2019re meaty with little seeds and they make great sauce.<\/p>\n Another key flavour step is the spice paste. This is the flavour base, so take your time with it and show it some love. It\u2019s really simple to put together but the crucial step is frying it off until it\u2019s aromatic. A tomato bredie is traditionally more aromatic than spicy but a little kick never hurt anyone.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n I like my bredie with just a touch of chilli hum, just enough to know it\u2019s there. When it comes to herbs I like to keep it simple with just a bit of thyme. I am a sucker for thyme\u2019s earthy flavours to complement the fresh tomato.<\/p>\n The trick to a great bredie is layers of flavour. Don\u2019t just chuck everything in the pot and hope for the best because you\u2019ll probably end up with a one dimensional pot. The final piece to this puzzle is what to serve it with? The choice is really up to you but if you want my recommendation, it\u2019s got to be a Malay style roti. They\u2019re crispy, flaky, lighter than an Indian roti and hard to make. I get mine from Mariam’s Kitchen<\/a> <\/strong>in Cape Town and I don\u2019t think it gets any better. Until we meat again, cheers!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Serves:<\/strong> 6-8 Spice Paste Bredie Start a fire first so that the coals are ready to go once you\u2019ve done the kitchen prep.<\/p>\n Spice Paste Add a little oil to a medium-sized frying pan and fry the onions over a moderate heat until browned. Add the spice paste and fry for 2 minutes while constantly stirring to cook off the spices.<\/p>\n Bredie Transfer the onion and spice mix to a large flat bottomed potjie pot or casserole dish. Roughly chop the charred tomatoes and add to the pot. Add the beef stock, tomato pur\u00e9e, water, cinnamon sticks, thyme, bay leaves and chutney and stir to combine. Lastly add the meat and ensure that it\u2019s submerged in the liquid. Put the lid on askew and simmer for 2 hours while stirring occasionally. After 2 hours add the potatoes and simmer for another hour with the lid off.<\/p>\n Garnish with chopped parsley, serve with rotis and dig in.<\/p>\n See other recipes in the Meet the Meat series.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n![\"Meet](\"https:\/\/test10.co.za\/C\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/MTM_LAMB-BREDIE.jpg\")
<\/div><\/div>\n![\"Meet](\"https:\/\/test10.co.za\/C\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/LAMB-NECK-01.jpg\")
<\/div>![\"Meet](\"https:\/\/test10.co.za\/C\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/LAMB-NECK-02.jpg\")
<\/div><\/div>\n![\"Meet](\"https:\/\/test10.co.za\/C\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/MTM_LAMB-BREDIE_RECIPE.jpg\")
<\/a><\/div><\/div>\nBRAAIED LAMB TOMATO BREDIE<\/h3>\n
\nPrep time:<\/strong> 60 mins
\nCook time:<\/strong> 3hrs<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>2 Tbsp (30 ml) tomato paste
\n2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
\n5 anchovies, finely chopped
\n1 tsp (5 ml) ginger, finely chopped
\n1 Tbsp (15 ml) curry masala
\n1 Tbsp (15 ml) paprika
\n2 tsp (10 ml) cumin powder
\n2 tsp (10 ml) coriander powder
\n2 large onions, chopped
\noil, for frying<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>2 kg lamb neck
\nsalt and pepper, to season
\nolive oil
\n800 g Roma tomatoes, halved
\n2 C (500 ml) good quality beef stock
\n1 tin (410 g) tomato pur\u00e9e
\n1 tin water (use the pur\u00e9e tin to measure)
\n2 cinnamon sticks
\n6 sprigs fresh thyme
\n2 bay leaves
\n\u00bd C (125 ml) chutney
\n4 large potatoes, peeled and quartered
\n\u00bd C flat leaf parsley, chopped<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Combine the tomato paste, garlic, anchovies, ginger, curry, paprika, cumin and coriander together in a bowl and set aside.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Using a sharp knife, slice the fat of the neck in half to prevent curling when braaing. Season the lamb neck with salt and pepper and then rub with a little olive oil. Braai the meat over hot coals for about 3 minutes a side or until the outside has caramelised. Braai the tomatoes cut side down until they begin to char.<\/p>\n
![\"Meet](\"https:\/\/test10.co.za\/C\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/MTM_BACON360X360.jpg\")
<\/a><\/div>![\"Meet](\"https:\/\/test10.co.za\/C\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/MTM_BRISKET360X360.jpg\")
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