Saturday, February 6, 2016

Bunny Chow



In Durban, South Africa, you can get a bunny chow at nearly every take-away in the city. If there is any street food that Durban is known for, it is bunny chow.  And contrary to the name, no bunny rabbits are used in this dish. 

It is a hollowed out loaf of government bread into which a curry stew of meat or beans and potatoes is placed. During apartheid non-whites could not go into restaurants to get food for their lunches.  But the restaurants could serve them from a window. Since Durban has the largest Indian population outside of India, curries are very popular in Durban.  The problem still remained though of how to serve the curry since disposable packaging was not widely available at the beginning of the apartheid era.  So, it was discovered that if you hollowed out a loaf of government bread, it would hold the curry nicely inside.  Then it was wrapped in newspaper for the workers to take with them.

To order, you simply ask for the size and type of meat without using the term Bunny Chow. For instance, if you ordered a quarter mutton, you would receive a quarter loaf of bread with mutton curry inside.

To truly experience a bunny, you must order and eat as the workers did in Durban by getting your bunny wrapped in newspaper and sitting on the curb of a side street or at a park bench. Using your hands, you tear off chunks of bread and use it as a utensil to grab chunks of meat and potatoes to eat while the bread absorbs most of the gravy.

Here in the US, we don't have "government" bread, so the next best thing is a good loaf of homemade white bread.  Gold Medal Classic White Bread is a good recipe.



Here is the curry recipe:

½ cup ghee, butter, or vegetable oil
2 onions, diced
6-8 cloves garlic, smashed & chopped
2” knob of ginger root, skin removed, smashed & finely chopped
4 Tablespoons Pakco Pure Roasted Masala*, or other good curry powder
2.5 lbs meat, cut into 1” chunks
1 14.5oz can petite diced tomatoes
2-3 teaspoons salt, or to taste
4 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed

1.            Add ghee to a Dutch oven or heavy bottomed pan and heat over medium heat.  Add onions and cook until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and ginger and cook for a further 2-3 minutes until garlic softens.






2.            Add Pakco Pure Roasted Masala to onions in pan and stir to mix well.  Continue to cook for 1-2 minutes over medium-low heat until spices are fragrant.  Add meat chunks and turn to coat in the onions and spices. 





3.            Add the tomatoes, and salt.  Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to medium low to maintain a low simmer.  Cover and let simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Do not let the meat burn or stick to the pan.


4.            Add the potatoes.  Stir to mix, then recover the pot and continue to simmer until the potatoes are fork tender.



5.            Remove the lid and if the sauce is too liquid, bring back to a boil to reduce the liquid to desired consistency, constantly stirring to prevent burning.  The sauce should be of a stew-like consistency.



6.            Remove from heat and let sit about 5 minutes before serving.  Serve with basmati rice or in a hollowed out loaf of bread or bread bowl to make a bunny chow.


*Pakco Pure Roasted Masala can be ordered from African Hut at http://www.africanhut.com/product.asp?id=63


**You can use beef, lamb (or mutton), chicken, or goat.

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