South African Braai Chakalaka with Grilled Sweet Corn and Boerewors

Get the braai going and let the wood burn down to coals — you want to cook over heat you can hold a hand above for four seconds, not over open flame.

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds boerewors (or a coarse coriander-spiced beef sausage coil)
• 4 ears sweet corn, husks on
• 3 tablespoons sunflower oil
• 1 large onion, finely diced
• 3 farmers-market bell peppers (red, yellow, green), diced
• 2 carrots, coarsely grated
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 to 2 red chilies, finely chopped, to taste
• 4 ripe tomatoes, grated or chopped
• 1 can (15 oz) baked beans in tomato sauce
• Salt, black pepper, and chopped cilantro to finish

Instructions

1. Get the braai going and let the wood burn down to coals — you want to cook over heat you can hold a hand above for four seconds, not over open flame.
2. Set the corn, still in its husks, at the edge of the coals and turn every few minutes for about 20 minutes while you make the chakalaka.
3. In a heavy pot set on the grate, heat the oil and cook the onion until translucent, 5 minutes.
4. Add the peppers, grated carrot and garlic and cook 8 minutes, stirring, until everything softens and the carrot loses its raw edge.
5. Stir in the curry powder, smoked paprika and chilies and cook one minute more, until fragrant — this blooms the spices in the oil rather than leaving them raw and dusty.
6. Add the tomatoes and simmer 12 to 15 minutes, until thick and jammy, then fold in the baked beans and warm through. Season with salt and pepper and pull to the cool side of the grate.
7. Coil the boerewors and pin it with two skewers so it holds its shape, then grill over the coals about 6 minutes a side, until springy and deeply browned. Resist puncturing it — that fat is the flavour.
8. Peel back the corn husks, char the kernels directly over the coals for a minute or two, and serve everything together: sausage sliced into lengths, corn alongside, chakalaka spooned over the top and finished with cilantro.
9. Chakalaka started in the townships around Johannesburg as a way to make a little into a lot, and it has since become the relish no braai is complete without. It is served hot alongside the meat or cold the next day with pap, and every family argues about the beans. What nobody argues about is the timing: the peppers and tomatoes come in heaviest in high summer, and that is when a pot of chakalaka tastes least like a recipe and most like the garden.

Nutrition (estimated, per serving)

• Calories: 690 kcal
• Protein: 29g
• Fat: 44g
• Carbohydrates: 45g
• Fiber: 9g
• Sugar: 16g
• Sodium: 1180mg