Tomato Bredie - Traditional South African Stew (Video)

Tomato bredie(stew) is a delicious, hearty, traditional South African dish from Cape Malay cuisine.

Along with bobotie, biltong, and droëwors, tomato bredie is in the top 10 most famous South African dishes.

Lamb or mutton is usually simmered in a rich tomato gravy with potatoes, warming herbs, and spices.

Its mild spiciness and perfect savoury, slightly sweet balance make it a favourite comfort food served with geelrys(yellow rice) at family gatherings.

It's also a perfect low-labour cook-ahead dish and only gets better the next day.

Jump to:

• Ingredients
• Instructions
• Video
• Tips for success
• Variations
• Serving suggestions
• Storage and reheating instructions
• Frequently asked questions
• Useful equipment
• More South African classics
• Recipe
• Comments

Ingredients

• Meat — Classically, mutton on the bone is used. However, it's not a must, but the bone does add more flavour to the bredie. In this recipe, I deboned a leg of lamb and then added the bones to the stew. The size of the meat pieces is up to you. Some like big chunky bits, but I prefer bite-sized ones unless it's on the bone.
• Onion — Finely diced white or red onion. You can also use shallots.
• Garlic — Minced fresh garlic is best, but you can substitute it for a teaspoon of garlic powder or pre-chopped garlic.
• Tomato — The most convenient is peeled and chopped tinned tomatoes. If you want, you can blanch, peel, and chop your own tomatoes. You could also use tomato passata which is smoothly blended tomatoes. As well as fresh or tinned tomatoes, we use classic thick tomato purée too.
• Potato — This is a must, even when served with rice. Potatoes are always peeled, and you can use them whole if they're small.
• Spices — Slight variations exist, like with most family-style recipes. I like using the classics. Allspice, coriander, chilli, black pepper, cloves, and cinnamon. If you don't want it spicy, then simply leave out the chilli. It's best to use whole spices, toast them, and then put them in a filter bag so you can easily remove them afterward.
• Herbs — Some people add basil or oregano, but I prefer to make the traditional tomato bredie. Bay leaves are all it needs. Fresh or dried will do.
• Seasoning — It's important to balance the dish with sugar and salt because the tomatoes are tart. Give it a taste as it cooks to understand how the flavour develops.

Instructions

1. Toast the spices in a dry pan on medium heat until fragrant. Let it cool down and place it into a filter bag or wrap it in a muslin cloth.
2. Brown the meat well in neutral oil on high heat, taking care not to burn the bottom of the pan. Once browned, remove and set aside. You want to remove any rendered fat as it will make the bredie heavy and oily.
3. Add the chopped onions along with fresh chilli (if using) and bay leaf. Cook until the onions are soft, scraping the fond off the bottom of the pan to pick up all those nice roasted meat flavours. Add a touch of water if the onions caramelise too fast.
4. Add the salt and tomato paste. Cook on medium heat until the raw smell of the tomato paste has disappeared.

1. Add the chopped tomatoes or tomato passata, along with the bones, if you have them, seared meat, sugar, and enough water or stock to cover.
2. Add the bag of spices or however you want to add them. I advise against simply throwing them in, as you would have to eat around them later.
3. Bring to a gentle simmer and give the bredie a good stir.
4. Close the pot with a lid and turn your stove down to low. You could also place it into the oven at 150 °C or 302 °F. Keep an eye on it so it doesn't burn. You need to cook it until the meat is tender. This can take anything from 1 to 2 hours, depending on your meat. If at any point the bredie needs more liquid, then add it.

1. Test the meat to see if it's soft every so often.
2. Once the meat is soft, add the potatoes and add more liquid as necessary. Close the lid and cook for another 20 to 30 minutes, depending on the size of the potatoes.
3. Test the potatoes every 10 minutes to see if they're done. As soon as they break open without resisting when split with a knife, they are perfect.
4. Give it a taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking. Serve or chill for later.

Video

Tips for success

• Whole spices you roast yourself will give much better flavour.
• Avoid simply throwing the spices into the bredie without it being in a filter bag or muslin cloth, as it will make the eating experience less than ideal. Bay leaves and whole chilli are fine, as they can be removed easily. If you don't have bags, then rather use ground spices.
• If you can find lamb or mutton chops on the bone, then use that. It has the best flavour.
• Remove excess fat from the meat and too much rendered fat after frying. Too much fat will result in a heavy, unhealthy, oily stew.
• Use a large enough pan to avoid overcrowding.
• Check up on it often to avoid it burning. Cook it in the oven or slow cooker if you can't keep an eye on it.
• Tomatoes all have different tartness, so you will need to season the bredie with sugar to balance the dish.

Variations

• Change the protein - Instead of lamb or mutton, you can use beef, chicken, pork or goat. You can also use shrimp and mussels to make a seafood version. The meats will have different cooking times, but the principle stays the same. For the seafood version, you want to add the seafood last-minute after the potatoes are cooked.
• Make it vegan - You can omit all the animal protein and add something like eggplant, cauliflower, pumpkin, white cabbage, chickpeas, and beans.
• Herbs and spices - Add thyme or oregano at the start of cooking or fresh basil right before serving. Avoid adding too many spices, but rather increase or decrease one or the other for different flavours.

Serving suggestions

Like many South African dishes, even though it contains potato already, it's best served with fluffy white rice or geelrys.

Alternatively, try it with quinoa, spiced couscous, barley, or buckwheat.

You can also add some healthy greens like broccoli or steamed spinach.

Storage and reheating instructions

Tomato bredie will keep well in the fridge for up to 5 days if sealed airtight.

It can also be frozen for up to 6 months for longer storage.

Defrost in the fridge overnight or in the microwave on the defrost setting before reheating to at least 75 °C or 167 °F.

Reheat gently on the stove to avoid it catching and burning. Alternatively, reheat it in the oven or microwave.

Frequently asked questions

Useful equipment

More South African classics

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