Mutton Tomato Bredie - Traditional African Stew :KsCooks -

Tomato bredie(stew) is a delicious, hearty, traditional South African dish from Cape Malay cuisine.Along with bobotie, biltong, and droëwors, tomato bredie is in the top 10 most famous South African dishes.Lamb or mutton is usually simmered in a rich tomato gravy with potatoes, warming herbs, and spices.

Its mild spiciness and perfect savoury, slightly sweet balance make it a favourite comfort food served with geelrys(yellow rice) at family gatherings.It’s also a perfect low-labour cook-ahead dish and only gets better the next day.

Meat— Classically, mutton on the bone is used. However, it’s not a must, but the bone does add more flavour to the bredie. In this recipe, I deboned a leg of lamb and then added the bones to the stew. The size of the meat pieces is up to you. Some like big chunky bits, but I prefer bite-sized ones unless it’s on the bone.
Onion— Finely diced white or red onion. You can also use shallots.
Garlic— Minced fresh garlic is best, but you can substitute it for a teaspoon of garlic powder or pre-chopped garlic.
Tomato— The most convenient is peeled and chopped tinned tomatoes. If you want, you can blanch, peel, and chop your own tomatoes. You could also use tomato passata which is smoothly blended tomatoes. As well as fresh or tinned tomatoes, we use classic thick tomato purée
Potato— This is a must, even when served with rice. Potatoes are always peeled, and you can use them whole if they’re small.
Spices — Slight variations exist, like with most family-style recipes. I like using the classics. Allspice, coriander, chilli, black pepper, cloves, and cinnamon. If you don’t want it spicy, then simply leave out the chilli. It’s best to use whole spices, toast them, and then put them in a filter bagso you can easily remove them afterward.
Herbs— Some people add basil or oregano, but I prefer to make the traditional tomato bredie. Bay leaves are all it needs. Fresh or dried will do.
Seasoning— It’s important to balance the dish with sugar and salt because the tomatoes are tart. Give it a taste as it cooks to understand how the flavour develops.

Prep Time: 30minutes

Cook Time: 2hours

Total Time: 2hours 30minutes

Cuisine Cape Malay, South African

Ingredients

5 kilograms (3 ⅓ lb) Lamb or Mutton – chunks (note 1)
200 grams (1 ¼ cups) onion – finely chopped (note 2)
20 grams (2 ½ tablespoon) garlic – minced or finely chopped
180 grams (⅔ cups) tomato paste
1 kilogram (2 lb) chopped tomatoes– tinned or fresh (note 3)
750 grams (1 ⅔ lb) potatoes – about 6 large peeled and quartered potatoes.
2 litres (2 litres) water or stock – may need more (note 4)
1 each (1 each) chilli pepper – whole fresh (note 5)
2 grams (1 teaspoon) coriander seeds
4 each (4 each) cloves
2 grams (1 teaspoon) allspice berries
2 grams (½ each) cinnamon stick
4 grams (1 tablespoon) black peppercorns
2 grams (1 teaspoon) chilli flakes
4 each (4 each) bay leaves
40 grams (3 ½ tablespoon) sugar
18 grams (1 tablespoon) salt

Instructions

Toast the spices in a dry pan on medium heat until fragrant. Let it cool down and place it into a filter bag or wrap it in a muslin cloth.
2 grams coriander seeds,4 each cloves,2 grams cinnamon stick,4 grams black peppercorns,2 grams chilli flakes,2 grams allspice berries
Brown the meat well in neutral oil on high heat, taking care not to burn the bottom of the pan. Once browned, remove and set aside. You want to remove any rendered fat as it will make the bredie heavy and oily. 1.5 kilograms Lamb or Mutton

Add the chopped onions along with fresh chilli (if using) and bay leaf. Cook until the onions are soft, scraping the fond off the bottom of the pan to pick up all those nice roasted meat flavours. Add a touch of water if the onions caramelise too fast. 200 grams onion,20 grams garlic,1 each chilli pepper,4 each bay leaves

Add the salt and tomato paste. Cook on medium heat until the raw smell of the tomato paste has disappeared.18 grams salt,180 grams tomato paste
Add the chopped tomatoes or tomato passata, seared meat and bones(if you have them), sugar and enough water or stock to cover.
1 kilogram chopped tomatoes,40 grams sugar,2 litres water or stock

Add the bag of spices or, however, you want to add them. I advise against simply throwing them in, as you would have to eat around them later.
Bring to a gentle simmer and give the bredie a good stir.

Close the pot with a lid and turn your stove down to low. You could also place it into the oven at 150 °C or 302 °F. Keep an eye on it so it doesn’t burn. You need to cook it until the meat is tender. This can take anything from 1 to 2 hours, depending on your meat. If at any point the bredie needs more liquid, then add it.

Test the meat to see if it’s soft every so often.

Once the meat is soft, add the potatoes and add more liquid as necessary. Close the lid and cook for another 20 to 30 minutes, depending on the size of the potatoes.750 grams potatoes the potatoes every 10 minutes to see if they’re done. As soon as they break open without resisting when split with a knife, they are perfect.

Give it a taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking. Serve or chill for later.

Notes

Meat on the bone in the form of chops is the best, but not all stores stock it. You can ask your butcher or de-bone a whole piece of meat on the bone, like lamb leg. The size of the chunks of meat is up to you. I prefer small pieces but use bigger ones by all means. The lamb or mutton can also be substituted for any other protein like chicken, beef or goat. See the post for more ideas.
Use any type of onion. Red, white or shallots. Don’t worry about chopping too perfectly. The onions will cook away in the bredie anyway.
You can use tinned peeled and chopped tomatoes or make your own. You could also use tomato passata which is simply smoothly blended tomatoes.
As the bredie cooks, the liquid will evaporate. Add more as needed and adjust the consistency to your liking. I prefer full-bodied stew, while others like it soupier. If you have or can buy beef, chicken or lamb stock then use that instead of water as it makes a tastier bredie.
Fresh chillies vary in heat considerably and should be used with caution if you don’t want the bredie too hot. Alternatively, if you like it hot, then add plenty more. Just a note though, tomato bredie is not traditionally a hot dish but rather very mildly spiced and slightly sweet and tangy.

Tips for success

Whole spices you roast yourself will give much better flavour.
Avoid throwing the spices into the bredie without it being in a filter bag or muslin cloth, as it will make the eating experience less ideal. Bay leaves and whole chilli is fine as they can be removed easily. If you don’t have bags, then rather use ground spices.
If you can find lamb or mutton chops on the bone, then use that. It has the best flavour.
Remove excess fat from the meat and too much rendered fat after frying. Too much fat will result in a heavy, unhealthy, oily stew.
Use a large enough pan to avoid overcrowding.
Check up on it often to avoid it burning. Cook it in the oven or slow cooker if you can’t keep an eye on it.
Tomatoes all have different levels of tartness, so you will need to season the bredie with sugar to balance the dish.

Storage instructions

Tomato bredie will keep well in the fridge for up to 5 days if sealed airtight. It can also be frozen for up to 6 months for longer storage. Simply defrost in the fridge overnight or in the microwave on the defrost setting before reheating to at least 75 °C or 167 °F. If you reheat from the fridge, then do it on gentle heat on the stove to avoid it catching and burning. Alternatively, reheat it in the oven or microwave.

Nutrition

Serving: 400grams Calories: 466kcal Carbohydrates: 35g Protein: 51g Fat: 14g Saturated Fat: 5g Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g Monounsaturated Fat: 5g Trans Fat: 0.001g Cholesterol: 142mg Sodium: 1364mg Potassium: 1522mg Fiber: 6g Sugar: 13g Vitamin A: 604IU Vitamin C: 38mg Calcium: 114mg Iron: 7mg