Food and Shopping in South Africa

Traditional Dishes in South Africa

South African food combines strong regional traditions with centuries of international influence. Dutch, Indigenous, Cape Malay and Indian communities have each contributed recipes and cooking techniques found in South Africa’s regional cuisines. Fresh seafood, quality meat and seasonal produce feature prominently throughout the country’s traditional dishes.

A braai is one of the country’s best-known culinary traditions. Families and friends gather around wood or charcoal fires to cook boerewors sausage, steaks, lamb chops and chicken, served with pap, chakalaka, fresh salads and bread. Potjiekos, a slow-cooked stew prepared in a cast-iron pot over an open fire, is another long-established favourite. Biltong, made from air-dried cured meat, and droëwors, a dried sausage, are sold in butchers, farm shops and markets throughout the country.

Cape Town is renowned for Cape Malay cuisine, where dishes such as bobotie combine aromatic spices, dried fruit and an egg topping, traditionally served with yellow rice. Durban’s famous bunny chow, a hollowed loaf of bread filled with curry, originated within the city’s Indian community. Fresh fish, oysters, mussels and seasonal crayfish feature on menus all along South Africa’s coastline.

Traditional desserts include malva pudding, milk tart and koeksisters, a syrup-coated braided pastry. Rooibos tea, grown exclusively in the Cederberg, is served alongside Cape wines, Méthode Cap Classique sparkling wines and Amarula cream liqueur, completing a meal with some of South Africa’s best-known flavours.