Cloudy...

Tried the caramel TimTams. Very tasty....definitely a step up over the chocolate.....regards.

 Mate, Cloudy's leading you astray with those TimTams.....what's wrong with melktert?

That too denny.....along with a good Grabouw boerewors.

Melktert translates to milk tart.....a bit like a creme brulee or pana cotta but lighter. And boerewors translates to farmer's sausage. Boerwors is a South African specialty, somehat spicy but more flavor than most sausages. The king of sausages...hahaha.

Hey. stop chaffing my Kiwi girlfriend...lolz...only joking, I'm happily married....but if I wasn' t I'd buy a ticket to Auckland with my homemade Durban Curry and Rice...from the Oyster Box at Umhlanga Rocks...a 6 star chef Kevin Joseph, one of the worlds best chefs and absolute gentleman...Kevin has cooked for many celebs including visiting filmstars Brad Pitt etc and heads of state

This is his curry reci pe...CLOUDY...will never tell his measures though...that's his hidden secret

y The Oyster Box Executive Chef Kevin Joseph

No visit to Durban is complete without enjoying a real Durban Curry.

Curry was introduced to the Colony of Natal over 150 years ago by indentured laborers who came from India, to work in the sugar cane fields. The word ‘curry’ comes from the Tamil word ‘kari’ which means ‘sauce’.

The unique flavours of Indian cooking, which were embraced by British settlers and the Zulus, have been developed over time to make the ‘Durban Curry’, famous around the world.

Durban curries, which are usually hotter, are coloured red with tomatoes, chilies and cayenne pepper. Expert curry makers from Durban boast that a typical Durban Masala curry powder has about 12 different ingredients in the blend. These include ground coriander, cinnamon, cumin, curry leaves, fennel seed, dried chilies and cayenne pepper, as well as ginger and garlic. The array of tasty Durban curries encompass many glorious dishes made from chicken, prawns, fish, beef and vegetables, but the most popular choice is lamb or mutton.

A typical Durban curry is made in a heavy pan. Onions are browned in oil, and then curry powder is added, followed by the garlic and ginger. This mixture is simmered before the lamb, chicken, beef or fish is folded in and then all the remaining ingredients are added. The pan is covered and the dish is left to simmer, bringing all the flavours together. Coriander is added just before serving. Durban curry is usually served over rice, with condiments such as chutney, sambals and papadums.

To pick up the essential ingredients for a Durban curry visit the Spice Emporium. This is the home of spicy blends of curry powders and traditional accompaniments. Although Durban curries can bring tears to the eye, there is always plenty of flavour in every dish.

My recipe for our Famous Lamb Curry

Preparation and cooking time: 1 hour

Serves: 4 people

Ingredients:

• 1 kg leg of lamb or shoulder (or 1 kg chicken), cubed
• 75 ml oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 cloves
• 2 cinnamon sticks (10 cm long)
• 20 ml medium strength masala curry powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 10 ml crushed garlic and ginger
• 4 curry leaves
• 5 ml whole fennel seeds
• 250 ml water (one cup)
• 2 large potatoes, peeled and cut in half
• 1 medium tomato, skinned and diced
• Coriander (dhania) leaves for

 Sorry continued

garnishing

Method:

1. Washed cube meat and drain water.
2. Heat oil and add diced onion, cloves and cinnamon sticks.
3. Add the masala powder mix, stir and add meat to the pot.
4. Add salt, garlic and ginger, curry leaves and fennel seeds. Stir all ingredients together.
5. Allow to cool on a high heat for 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium and continue cooking for 30 minutes.
6. As excess water and juices evaporate, add the additional cup of water, followed by the potato and tomato.
7. When both meat and vegetables are cooked (approximately 30 minutes), simmer on high heat for 5 minutes.
8. Garnish with coriander and serve with rice, roti and green salad.

Kevin’s curry powder mix is a carefully guarded secret but we can share what goes in it with you. As too the measurements… only Kevin knows!

For veggies you can substitute the meat with vegetables of your choice including cauliflower, cubed butternut, sweet potato, lentils, carrots, courgettes and more. One note – don’t add cardamon if you are doing a veggie curry!

The Oyster Box Curry Masala Mix (100ml):
Cumin
Coriander
Fennel
Turmeric
Mild Masala
Aniseed
Cinnamon
Medium Masala
Cardamom

I can promise you this is delicious, absolutely...could not get the measures right at first...the scoundrel does not part with it...but I played around with his ingredients and got eventually it as tasty as it can be...and then again it's so good you cannot make it public...it's an absolute money spinner but that's only lamb/mutton... his chicken and prawn is totally mind blowing. I nearly I would open a restaurant but it's a lot of sweat and risk and I am getting too old for this s h it.

Hey. Mike I;m sure you must have been there living in Tinley Manor, just down the road?

Yeah Cloudy maybe me and missus must put Europe, Africa and USA (forget about ...nothing augurs well here in Zuma Zombie land, no matter) totally away and take what's left of our assets in South Africa before the looters (as Ayn Rand predicted in Atlas Shrugged) are taken away...this is actually very real...not science fiction AND COME TO NZ...open a restaurant...Elena my wife is an outstanding cook...amazing...she worked at Korolev...Space Research , 50 klms from Moscow centre...she would kill me for putting this public. But yes dear Cloudy I wish people were nicer to each other in every day life BUT if they want to fight get where the action is and join the forces....battles are more fun with real solid metal weapons than the internet, at least when you get clobbered there's no more augument.

I think Wardad knows exactly what I'm saying.

Cloudy, I'm serious that curry of Kevin's is first prize in the world...tourists.. some of them celebs have tried to get his secrets...the trouble is you have the ingredients but not the exact measures, beautiful spicing is more than science it's an art...when Jamie Oliver was younger and cooking for a few pennies and had one or two simple exposures he was real good...he is still good but public draw has killed the spice to his presentation,,,,and yes his character.

 Phheeew.Gone from Melktert to curry. Cloudy, if you haven't had boerewors then you haven't had sausage.....simple as. Melktert, well now, everyone claims to be an expert only to be exposed as pretenders, for the real deal you'd have to visit SA and follow your nose  for a wholly delicious and mouthwatering experience..... Tant Bessie is your best bet.