braai | anél potgieter

Crispy braaied pig tails – I know that there are many adventurous and fearless chefs out there… this one is for you!

This dish is certainly not for the dainty, squeamish or occasional outdoor chef that thinks a chop and a lettuce leaf constitutes a real South African barbeque … sorry … I meant braai! 🙂

Potjie’s entry a few weeks ago where he talked about English Chef, Fergus Henderson’s book, “The Whole Beast: Nose to Tail Eating”, struck a chord with me and I think we share the same philosophies when it comes to cooking. Be brave, be daring and never be scared to cook with what you have…whatever you have… It also reminded me that I had about 10 pig tails lying in my freezer. I had bought these a while back from Frankie Fenner after I had seen them being cooked on Masterchef. Back then they looked very scary and they still do – very kind of Avatar-ish!

So with National Braai Day being celebrated in the coming days it provided a perfect opportunity to haul these little, curly porky tails over the coals.

The most important thing for me was to make sure that the tails came out soft but still retained that beautiful pork flavour – oh yes, that they had that crispy crackling to feast on. To soften up the tails I steamed them for 15 minutes then braaied them on the grid over medium coals (charcoal or wood). Keeping it simple, I served it up with my own homemade mustard dipping sauce. It was decadent and delicious – as Jan Spies used to say “ryk, maar lekker” [rich but delicious].

Some advice: If you do come across a few people who are still a little squeamish about eating the pig tails … pass them the salad.

Have a fantastic braai day.

Serves: 4
Steaming and braaiing time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

For steaming
4 Pig tails
2 Cloves garlic – roughly chopped
1 Onion cut in quarters
1 Celery stick – roughly chopped
5 Pepper corns
2 Cups of water

For seasoning on the braai
Ground coriander
Salt
White Pepper

For mustard dipping sauce
60g Mascarpone cheese or cream cheese
20g Hot English mustard
1t Chutney

Method
1. Place all the ingredients in a pot and steam for 15 minutes. If you don’t have a steam pot cover the same ingredients in a roasting pan – cover with foil and bake at 190 degrees for 40 minutes till soft. Please remember to top up your roasting pan with water.
2. Take the tails and place them on the grid over medium coals on the braai. Sprinkle with salt, pepper (coarse salt and pepper would be good) and ground coriander. Braai till the skin is crispy and crackly. About 5 miutes a side.
3. Mustard Sauce : Mix all ingredients and serve in a small bowl next to the crispy tails.

I have been very fortunate to be chosen with my dear friend, Joani to partake in the Western Cape auditions of “The Ultimate Braai Master” competition (ultimatebraaimaster.com). So naturally I will be braaiing a lot more! I have been braaiing since a very young age … growing up with three brothers and a father that thought that going without a braai every couple of days was an insult to ones’ culture and constitution. My dad taught me how to make a fire, how to braai the perfect chops and “wors”, meat and “braaibroodjies”. We braaied a few times a week – sunshine or rain and through the years the braai became a part of my soul. Every time I smell a braai it brings back the fondest childhood memories of my dad. Nowadays I braai every Friday night – without exception. So last Friday I decided to brush up my chicken braaiing skills. I really believe in making your own marinades – I despise the “off the shelf” marinades – I don’t like the taste and you will never find it in my kitchen. I searched for different marinades and got some amazing marinades on Alida Ryder’s blog (simply-delicious.co.za). I love reading her blog – so please do yourself a favour and make time to read some of her recipes.

frankie + robbie helping me with the fire

Below are four of my favourite marinade recipes from Alida’s blog – each one of them is simply delish. I did add some chillies to the Indian and Moroccan recipes. Try it – it’s so easy and very moreish!

All these recipes will yield enough marinade for 1 large chicken – butterflied or cut into pieces. The method for all these marinades are the same, combine the ingredients, pour over the chicken and massage the little bird a bit – marinade for at least 30 minutes (or up to 1 day) before braai-ing.

Moroccan
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup lemon juice
2tsp ground cumin
2tsp ground coriander
2tsp paprika
1tsp ground cinnamon
2tbsn honey
1 tsp salt
1-2 red chillies finely chopped

Greek
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup lemon juice
2tbsn fresh oregano chopped (or 1 tbsn dried oregano)
1tbsn fresh mint, finely chopped (or 1tsp dried)
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1tsp salt
Black pepper to taste

Indian
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2tsp crushed ginger
2tbsn garam masala
1tsp ground coriander
1-2 red chillies finely chopped

French Provincial
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup lemon juice
4 sticks fresh thyme (or 1tbsn dried)
2tsp Dijon mustard
3 garlic cloves, crushed

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crispy braaied pig tails = salty + crackly decadence

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