Pap is a South African staple. Much more than a traditional breakfast, this polenta-like dish is often enjoyed with meat and sauce, whether it is a juicy onion and tomato stew or another South African favourite, chakalaka. Celebrating our South African food heritage and trying an alternative side dish for Braai Day, Chef Christiaan suggests this take on a paptert. Combining pap with the savoury notes of biltong and feta, the temptation of cream and cheese and refreshing chives and basil, the dish is an absolute star. Serve with spicy chakalaka and you are on the money! We suggest a glass or two of our newly introduced 2019 Leopard's Leap Pinotage or the versatile 2020 Leopard's Leap Chardonnay Pinot Noir. The fruitiness and flexibility of this wine makes it the ideal partner to the complex flavours of the paptert and chakalaka!

Paptert

Serves 4-6

Pap

750 ml   warm water

2.5 ml    fine salt

15 ml     butter

250 ml   mielie pap

250 ml   fresh or frozen corn kernels

Filling

15 ml     olive oil

½         red onion, diced

250 g     mushrooms, sliced

5 ml       garlic, crushed

15 ml     chives

180 g     sliced biltong

100 g     feta, crumbled

250 ml   cream

125 ml   Dalewood Boland Cheese, grated

Fresh basil, to serve

Method

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

For the pap, place the water and salt in a pot and bring it up to a boil. Stir in the butter and then whisk in the pap. Turn the heat down, cover with a lid and cook it over very low heat for 15 minutes. Whisk twice during cooking to get rid of any lumps.

Stir in the corn and cook for a further 5 minutes.

For the filling, heat the oil in a pan over medium heat. Gently sauté the onion for 5 minutes until tender. Turn up the heat and add in the mushrooms. Fry for 3-4 minutes and then add the garlic and fry for another minute. Stir in the chives and lightly season the mixture.

To assemble the tert, place half of the pap at the bottom of a 15cm x 20cm ovenproof dish. Add the mushroom filling on top. Add a layer of biltong and then the crumbled feta.

Pour over half of the cream and then the rest of the pap. Neaten the edges so that all of the filling is covered. Pour over the rest of the cream and then scatter the grated Dalewood Boland on top.

Bake for 15 minutes until the cheese is melted. Scatter some fresh basil on top and serve with Chakalaka (below) and a glass of 2019 Leopard's Leap Pinotage.

Chakalaka

Ingredients     

300 g  Carrot, peeled and grated    

500 g Cauliflower, grated    

2 Onions, finely chopped

3 Garlic cloves, grated  

100 g Tomato paste 

30 ml Soy sauce       

30 ml White wine vinegar    

250 ml Red wine        

125 ml White sugar    

30 ml  Paprika           

15 ml Turmeric          

15 ml Curry powder 

Sea Salt

Freshly cracked black pepper           

90 ml Olive oil blend

Method           

Add the olive oil blend to a large saucepan over medium heat.     

Add the white onions and sauté until soft.     

Add the carrots, cauliflower and garlic and sauté for a further 5 minutes.   

Combine the paprika, turmeric, curry powder and white sugar with the red wine, soy sauce and tomato paste, stir to combine.

Add the red wine mixture to the pot and sauté over medium heat for 10 minutes. 

Add the sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste.