Whats for Lunch? Traditional South African `Bunny Chow’ with Lamb Curry (Recipe)

In South Africa, there is the usual collection of generic international street food like hamburgers, fried chicken, or fish and chips, but here and there you will find some truly South African food being sold on the streets, like Durban’s home-grown favourite: “Bunny Chows”  

A Bunny Chow can only be eaten with your hands, from there the name originated. "Bunny" because you are eating with your hands like a rabbit and the word Chow, was a slang word used for food. Bunny Chow originated in the KwaZulu Natal region amongst the first Indians who came to this region to work in the sugar fields – Indian workers did not have the time to make the traditional Indian breads and because it took too much time and effort to cart all the different containers with curries to work, in the days before disposable containers they cut the bread loaf in half, hollowed the soft part of the bread and filled it with their choice of curry. A nutritious and filling meal, all in one parcel. 

The curry used in a bunny chow varies according to taste – chicken, lamb, beef or vegetable are all popular, and the level of heat varies

The bread component of a bunny chow may be a whole, half or quarter white loaf, and the scooped out centre (known as the virgin) is replaced on top of the curry before serving. The virgin is then dipped into the gravy before and eaten as an appetizer.

Bunny chow terminology is a minefield for the uninitiated. When suggesting to friends that you should go and get bunny chows for a meal, using the word “chow” marks you out as a clueless foreigner – the correct term would be “let’s go get some bunnies for lunch”. And when ordering, you shouldn’t even use the word bunny – you merely order a whole, half or a quarter, depending on the portion of bread you want, and specify the type of filling you want (e.g. a half beef, or a whole chicken). And be very careful if you have a funny bunny – this is a bunny made from the centre of the loaf rather than the end and, as such, has no crust at the base.

Bunny Chow with Lamb Curry

Ingredients:  

2 white loaves of bread - halved (big appetites) or quartered (smaller appetites).

1 kg lamb (or beef cubes)
3-4 potatoes, cubed
1 medium onion, chopped.
1 red pepper, diced
2 large tomatoes or 16 oz tin chopped tomatoes

2-3 curry leaves or 4 tsp Curry powder
1 thumb size piece root ginger, crushed (1.5 tsp)
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 stick cinnamon  
1 tsp star anise

4 green cardamom pods, lightly crushed

2 Tbs vegetable oil
2 cups vegetable or beef stock

salt and pepper to taste
Fresh coriander leaves to garnish

1 or 2 (depending on the size) crusty, square loaves of bread

Method:

Cube the meat and slice the onion; peel and dice the tomato.

Heat the oil and add the cinnamon stick, cardamom pods, onion and curry leaves. Fry until the onion is light golden brown in color.

Add the curry powder, turmeric, ginger, garlic and tomato. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the mix resembles a puree.

Add the meat and cook for about 10 minutes. Then add the potatoes and about 1/4 cup of water. Lower the heat and simmer over low heat until the meat is tender and the potatoes cooked. Keep an eye on it to make sure the bottom of the pot does not burn.

When the meat is cooked through and the potatoes are tender (about 30 minutes) test for seasoning and add salt if necessary. Simmer for a further 10 minutes on a low heat.

Now make the following sauce:

1 level Tbs flour
1 tsp curry powder
3 Tbs chutney
3 Tbs good Tomato ketchup
3 Tbs vinegar
3 Tbs apricot jam

Stir sauce into stew and cook through. Add seasoning to taste.

In the meantime, take a fresh loaf of white bread – it needs to be crusty on the outside with a nice, soft crumb. Little farmhouse loaves half the size of standard loaves are ideal. Halve the loaf and scoop out the soft white crumb, leaving the crust to form a “bowl”.

Spoon the curry into the half loaf and serve, garnished with coriander leaves. The soft crumb can be dipped into the curry and eaten as well.

ENJOY!

*Recipe adapted from Nina’s Kitchen