Whether he's cooking on fire,in ovens or over a cast-iron pot,South African-born and Adelaide-based chef Duncan Welgemoed is known for his bold and complex cooking.
His hatted restaurant,Africola,has inspired a cult following for its intensely flavourful dishes that speak of his homeland and taste.
"My love for food and cooking stems from my childhood,growing up in Norwood,Northern Johannesburg,during the transition of power from the all-white National Party to Mandela's African National Congress,"Welgemoed writes in hisnew collection of recipes,Africola.
Here are three recipes that capture the spirit of the cookbook.
Peri peri chicken better than N@ndhoes
OK,gather round,kids. Time for some real talk now. Peri peri chicken is the most important dish in my life because Mozambican/Portuguese food was central to my upbringing in Johannesburg. This recipe is my father's,the most important man in my life (apart from my two boys) and remains unchanged. It's better than pretty much all the recipes for this dish that exist and it completely destroys that sacrilegious famous,franchised,overcooked and overpriced product,which due to legal reasons I can't mention by name. In honour of my father,my beautiful city of Johannesburg and the chefs that cook this dish day in,day out … I give you THE WORLD-FAMOUS AFRICOLA PERI PERI CHICKEN.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 whole chicken,spatchcocked
- lemon wedges
- 4 soft floured bread rolls
- Top and tail your rhubarb and cut into 10cm length pieces. Place in a saucepan with the pomegranate seeds and cover with the caster sugar,300ml (1¼ cups) water,rose water and 2 vanilla pods. Place over heat and gently simmer until the rhubarb is just soft. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.
- Preheat the oven to 100C fan-forced (120C conventional). Line two baking trays with baking parchment.
- To make the meringues,whisk the egg whites and pinch of salt in a mixer for 3-4 minutes until firm peaks form. With the motor running,gradually add the caster sugar and whisk for 2-3 minutes until thick and glossy.
- Sieve the icing sugar and cornflour over and gently fold in to combine. Sprinkle in the dried rose petals and Sichuan pepper and mix in,then spoon 8cm diameter mounds onto the baking trays.
- Bake the meringues for 45-50 minutes,until they lift easily from the trays and are crisp but not coloured. Turn off the heat and leave the meringues to cool completely inside the oven.
- Whisk the thick cream,creme fraiche and icing sugar together in a separate large bowl until soft peaks form. Split the remaining vanilla pods in half and scrape the seeds from the pods into the mixture.
- Scatter half the rhubarb into the base of a serving bowl or six jars,spread with half the cream mixture,and coarsely crumble half the meringue over the top. Repeat with the remaining ingredients and decorate with rose petals.
Makes:1 big bowl/6 jars
This is an edited extract fromAfricolaby Duncan Welgemoed,published by Murdoch Books,RRP $49.99. Food photography:Simon Bajada. Art photography:Emmaline Zanelli.Buy now