For Father's Day, South African BBQ & Cuisine, the Original "Paleo" Diet with Sweet South African Wine, thanks Chef Hugo Uys.

By Laura Medina

Chef Hugo Uys, manning the Wines of South Africa Braai and Wine Tasting.

Since Father's Day is smack dabbed in the middle of Barbeque Season, a.k.a. Summer, it seems fitting to give him what he wants yet unexpected but true to form of grilling.

Way back on November 3rd of last year, the Wines of South Africa Braai & Wine Tasting made a tour stop at Raleigh Studios, in the shadows of Paramount Studios.

This is where and when this scribe was introduced to South African cuisine which essentially "braai," South African grilling and barbequing and those sweet wines they produce there. 

South African chef, Chef Hugo Uys manned the crew and used South African ingredients in American dishes to make them easier to sneak into American palates...to a big hit!

It cannot help it, due to the fact, it's an arid, warm climate next to the sea, that the South African cuisine or diet is the original "Paleo" Diet since natives and settlers have to live on the land consisting of fruit, nuts, and whatever livestock they can hunt down.  They really did chased after their meal.  This settled into beef jerkies and dried fruit, supplemented by nuts, to preserve the food.  

These were the appetizers, dried ostrich meat, dried fruit, and nuts, the ultimate Zone Diet or the original Paleo Diet.

Since Chef Uys and his crew were sweating it out under the California sun feeding cultivated Los Angeleno foodies, aided by his fellow South African wine makers, he snuck South African meat into American dishes, like ostrich tacos.

This what this scribe's South African meal consisted of, one big South African Braai BBQ of grilled meat, kebabs, some grains (not quinoa), some salad for the Americans, and a side dish of sweet dried fruit to compliment the barbequed meat.

Why dried fruit with BBQ meat? Easy.  Tomatoes don't fare too well underneath the blazing African sun in a desert climate.

Those rough and tumble settlers have to make do whatever they have on hand.

This means marinating those tough wild game meats into acidic but sweet fruit juices to tenderize, moisten, and/or to preserve them, or at least, give them flavor.

Once tenderized, those sweet meats are grilled, sans tomato sauce, then paired with fruit and nuts.  See, the original Paleo Diet, not one wheat grain in sight.

Here's all-South African BBQ Recipe that you can use and cook here in Good Ole USA for Father's Day...

Marinated lamb kebabs with mango salsa

 Ingredients

 Kebabs:

• 1kg 2cm lamb cubes (shoulder or leg)
• 1 large onion, quartered
• 2 red sweet peppers, seeded and chopped
• 2 green peppers, seeded and chopped
• 100ml avocado oil (may substitute with olive oil)
• 4ml salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• Marinade:
• 10
  ml
  ground cumin
• 2.5ml ground ginger
• 8 cloves garlic, crushed
• 10ml finely grated lemon rind
• 
  

• 250ml natural yoghurt
• 5ml freshly ground black pepper
• 125ml avocado oil
• 10ml paprika
• Salsa:
• 1 large mango, peeled and cubed (out of season, substitute with canned mango, drained, or dried mango
• 1 red chilli, seeded and chopped
• 1 red onion, peeled and cubed
• 60ml Italian parsley, chopped
• 30ml avocado oil
• 30ml fresh lemon juice Preparation: 

  Method

  Marinade: 1. Mix all the ingredients and add the lamb cubes. Combine thoroughly and rub the marinade into the meat with your fingertips. Cover and refrigerate overnight or for at least 2 hours. Kebabs: 1. Separate the onion quarters. 2. Remove the meat cubes from the marinade and alternately thread the meat, onion and peppers onto skewers. 3. If braaing, coat the grid with avocado oil, or grill under a preheated grill until golden brown and cooked to your preference. 4. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Salsa: 1. Mix all the ingredients and serve with the kebabs 

   

   

Aaahhhh, sweet, sweet wine...

Thanks to the intense UV sun rays that grows those grapes plump then concentrate the fructose in the cold, desert nights, South African wines taste and feel like Riesling or any dessert wines; and this ain't no insult.

It's another Zone/Paleo Diet-friendly dessert option who thirst for a more elegant option other than fruit and nuts.

South Africa isn't spoiled by seas of wheat of the Midwest and the European Elegance of the East Coast of the United States of America, South Africans have to be ingenious with whatever they have on hand when it comes to dessert beyond dried fruit and nuts.  Look on the bright side, South African cuisine is gluten-free.

Chef Hugo Uys called his dessert, "Everything but the Kitchen Sink" Cake for the dessert-spoiled Americans.

Honestly, that's what he said because South Africans don't have resources nor the culinary techniques that Americans tend to take for granted.

Because most South African pastries tend to be fly-by-your-seat, Chef Hugo honestly said he took everything out of the kitchen cabinets and the refrigerator, dumped everything in the bowl, mixed and baked then dolloped the whole cakes in whipped cream (ssshhh, it might be good ole reliable Cool Whip).

Since we're aiming at guys this Father's Day, Chef Hugo's cake is acceptable and relate-able to how most guys would bake.

The only thing this scribe can tell you about this cake is this...it's a love child between a gingerbread cake and a pound cake, really heavy as it is moist, sprinkled with whole nuts then iced in whipped cream then sprinkled with crushed nuts.  Something the average dad can do.

Since the South African has to make do with when it comes to dessert, this all-South African dessert is something the dad and the kid(s) can do together with minimal effort.

Strawberry ice cream with nougat involves no whipping of egg whites nor heavy churning.

Just soften store-bought strawberry ice cream, mixed in chopped bits of store-bought nougat candy bars then re-freeze it for a treat.

But here's the recipe for the food-crafty...

Ingredients

• 500
  ml
  full cream milk
• 500
  ml
  cream
• 1
  vanilla pod
• 8
  egg yolks
• 
  

• 150
  g
  castor sugar
• 500
  g
  strawberries
• 2
  bars of nougat

Servings: Change Serving

Method

Bring the milk, cream and vanilla to the boil.
Remove from the heat and stand for 10 minutes to allow the vanilla to infuse the milk.
Beat together the egg yolks and castor sugar until pale.
Slowly add the milk mixture to the egg mixture, stirring continuously until the mixture thickens slightly and coats the back of a wooden spoon. Cool completely.
Turn the mixture into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer's instructions. (Alternatively, pour into a metal bowl, freeze and beat a few times to break up the ice crystals.)
Cut the strawberries into small pieces and mash lightly with a potato masher.
Cut the two bars of nougat into small cubes.
Defrost the ice cream slightly and fold in the strawberries and nougat. Freeze once more.
Serve in ice cream cones.
Makes about two litres.Hint:
To save time use good quality vanilla ice cream instead of making the ice cream. Soften slightly and stir in the strawberries and nougat. Return to the freezer and freeze until hard.