Page 45 - Through the eyes of an African chef

iBhani – Bunny chow
This dish of a hollowed-out bread loaf filled with curry originated in the 1940s, when apartheid laws prevented Africans from dining in Indian restaurants in the coastal city of Durban. Enterprising Indian business owners, on the request of their hungry customers, started serving the self-contained meal through the windows of their shops, as the African diners could not come inside.
In September 2010, I had the pleasure of judging the Durban Bunny Chow competition, which was hosted by eThekwini Municipality during Heritage Month. Bunny chows come with an array of fillings, from strictly vegetarian to meat-crammed feasts. By the end of the day, we tasted close to 100 bunnies. Safe to say, I was all bunnied out for a year after that!
INSTRUCTIONS
For the bread: Buy unsliced brown bread, or make your own loaf, just as the workers did in Durban. You only need 1⁄4 of the loaf for one serving. Remove the soft-core part of the bread, leaving some of it towards the bottom, so it holds the liquid when you serve.
For the meat: Sear the meat in a medium thick-based pot, then set aside. Heat oil, add onion, garlic, ginger, bay leaf, cinnamon stick, cumin, turmeric, curry leaves and masala. Stir and cook the spices well – for about 5 minutes. Add the meat and stir well. (I prefer to use a wooden spatula to scrape the caramelised bits of meat from the pan used for searing it.)
Continue cooking until the meat is soft and the pungent aromas of the spices fill the kitchen. Add the tomatoes (I like a lot of gravy, but if you don’t, use less than the quantity given, remembering that the sauce will reduce a bit while simmering). Simmer for 15–20 minutes, until the tomatoes have made a thick sauce and add balance to the curry flavours and colour. Add chopped parsley or coriander at the end.
TO SERVE
When cooked, remove from the heat and spoon into the bread. Fill it to the top and serve. This method of serving is known as ‘ibhani’ or ‘bunny chow’.
To eat, simply tear off parts of the bread and use them to scoop the lamb curry with your fingers and enjoy. You will be forgiven if you use a spoon instead!
INGREDIENTS
1⁄4 loaf of bread
200g lamb, cubed
20ml canola oil
1 medium onion, chopped 2 cloves garlic, crushed 3ml fresh ginger
1 bay leaf
1 cinnamon stick
3ml cumin
1ml turmeric
2 curry leaves
2ml mix masala
1 x 410g canned tomatoes
Handful fresh coriander or chopped parsley
THROUGH THE EYES OF AN AFRICAN CHEF
SERVES 1
PREPARATION TIME 15 MINS COOKING TIME ±1 HR 15 MINS
[ chapter two ] MAINS AND SIDE DISHES 43