SOME LIKE IT HOT!

As the weather begins to cool down, it feels only right that we begin to think of cooler weather food. But don’t get me wrong – I’m not talking about potjiekos and comfort food. I am talking chillies! What better way to take the chill out of the air than with a nice ‘n spicy recipe?

At Cape to Cairo, we stock so many products that are chilli laden or chilli laced, from our chilli biltong and drywors to our range of chilli sauces and the classics like Koo Baked Beans and Simba chilli chips. Therefore, this month I am paying homage to the chilli, from the humbly hot to the scorching, using some of my favourite chilli-spiked ingredients we have in-store!

Chilli Bite Chicken Pieces

Think KFC on steroids. This chicken dish packs a delicious chilli punch!

Serves 4

Ingredients

500g chicken pieces

1 packet (250g) Packo Chilli Bite Mix

Vegetable oil for frying

Handful of coriander, for serving

For the marinade:

1 cup (250ml) buttermilk

2 Tbsp (30ml) Ina Paarman chicken spice

2 cloves garlic crushed

1 Tbsp (15ml) crushed ginger

Method

1. Mix all the marinade ingredients together and marinate the chicken pieces. Allow to chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
3. Remove the chicken pieces from the marinade and drain off the excess.
4. Toss the chicken pieces in the chilli bite mix until well coated. Set aside for 5 minutes for batter to develop.
5. Shallow fry in medium-hot oil until golden.
6. Place in the oven and cook for 20-30 minutes more, or until they are completely tender. Drain on kitchen paper and serve scattered with coriander.

Lucky Star Thai Chilli Fishcakes

Lucky Star pilchards are a South African staple. Here I’ve given the classic fishcake a Thai twist I am sure you will love!

Makes about 10 medium fishcakes

Ingredients

1 can (400g) Lucky Star chilli pilchards, sauce drained and reserved

3 spring onions, finely chopped

2 tsp (10ml) grated ginger

1 cup (250ml) fresh breadcrumbs

1 egg, beaten

2 Tbsp (30ml) Wellington’s Hot Sweet Chilli Sauce

Handful of fresh coriander, chopped

Salt and milled pepper

For the coating:

½ cup (125ml) flour

1 egg, beaten

2 cups (500ml) fresh breadcrumbs

½ cup (125ml) shredded coconut

Lime wedges and salad for serving

Method

1. Tip the fish into a bowl and remove the central bones. Flake the fish and add a few tablespoons of the chilli sauce (not too much or the mixture will be too soft).
2. Add all the remaining ingredients for the fishcakes, season, and mix well.
3. Shape the mixture into medium-sized fishcakes and refrigerate for 30 minutes to set.
4. Dust the fishcakes in flour, dip into the egg, and then coat all over with the breadcrumb mixture.
5. Shallow fry the fishcakes in batches until golden all over. Drain on kitchen towel.
6. Serve the fishcakes with lime wedges, salad, and extra chilli sauce.

Cook’s tip:

You can easily replace the pilchards with some leftover braaied snoek.

Sweet Chilli and Boerewors Pizza

This is a great way to turn your weekend braai leftovers into Sunday night dinner!

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 roll Cape to Cairo Peri-Peri Boerewors

4 pizza bases

1 can (400g) Miami Braai Relish

1 small pineapple, cut into chunks

1 green bell pepper, sliced

Dried oregano, for sprinkling

4-5 cups grated mozzarella cheese

For serving

Wellington’s Sweet Chilli Sauce

A couple of handfuls of fresh rocket

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200°C.
2. Brown the boerewors in a pan (or use leftovers), but do not cook it all the way through. Cut the boerewors into bite-size pieces.
3. Spread the pizza bases with braai relish and top with wors, pineapple, pepper and oregano, and season well.
4. Scatter over the cheese and bake until golden and bubbling.
5. Served drizzled with sweet chilli sauce and scattered with rocket.

And there you have it – some sizzling-hot chilli recipes to keep the chill at bay! I’d love to know what you think of these recipes and our offering at Cape to Cairo, so please leave a comment below.

Happy feasting!

X Kim