South African Roosterkoek – Grilled to perfection on the braai

If there is one thing South Africans love, it is a braai. Every weekend, it is tradition to light a fire and grill a succulent steak or juicy chops over hot coals. Equally important is the side dishes accompanying the aromatic meat. Roosterkoek is an old traditional favourite that will make your braai experience so much more enjoyable.

Roosterkoek is basically a simple dough prepared under 40 minutes and then grilled on the braai over a low fire for 10 minutes on each side. The result is a crispy, grilled bread roll steaming with flavour when you break it open. The best part is to slather a generous knob of butter on the roosterkoek and allow it to melt into the warm bread.

If time is not on your side, you can purchase prepared dough at your local supermarket. However, if you have some time on your hands, it is great fun to prepare your own dough.

With roosterkoek, your braai experience will never be the same again.

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South African Roosterkoek Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Recipe by James Olivier Course: SidesCuisine: South AfricanDifficulty: Easy

Servings

12

servings

Prep time

40

minutes

Cooking time

20

minutes

Total time

1

hour 

The two most important things when it comes to cooking the perfect roosterbrood is giving the dough time to rise, and then cooking it on coals that aren’t too hot. Other than that, it’s as easy as pie … or in this case: bread.

Ingredients

• 1 kg white bread flour

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1 tablespoon sugar

• 10 g instant dry yeast

• 60 g butter, cut into small cubes

• 600 ml lukewarm water

Method

• Mix the flour, salt, sugar and yeast together.
• Add the butter into the flour mixture, rubbing with your fingertips until mixture resembles crumbs.
• Add the water to the dry ingredients to form a soft dough.
• Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic (between 6 and 10 minutes).
• Place the dough in a large greased bowl. Cover with cling wrap and allow to stand in a warm place until doubled in size. This should take1 – 2 hours.
• Knead the dough again and shape into 12 balls.
• Place the balls of dough into a greased pan and allow them to stand for a further 10 minutes.
• Flatten the balls slightly and sprinkle with a little flour.
• Cook over low fire for 10 minutes on each side.
• Tap the bread with your fingers, when it makes a hollow sound it is ready to be taken off.

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Don’t you just love local braai dishes? So do we, so why not head over to our recipes section and find more yummy meals to prepare in the comfort of your own home.

Also, if you have a recipe you would like to submit as part of our South African themed recipe competition, click here to enter and stand a chance to win R1000. Each recipe published as part of this competition will receive R100.