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Our national chef hero, Reuben Riffel, shares his Heritage Day menu

Skewered strawberries with a honey and black pepper glaze. (Photo: Craig Fraser)

20 Sep 2024

This Heritage Day, approach your braai the way chef Reuben Riffel does. In this Braai Day menu from his new book, Braai, he brings us his fire roasted mielies, wood fired brined chicken, fish heads with sriracha butter, tandoori lamb chops, and an intriguing dessert of BBQ strawberries with black pepper honey glaze.

Yep, me too. When my eye fell on that dish of braaied strawberry skewers with a glaze of honey and black pepper, it was immediately stored in that part of my brain that logs good food ideas. In fact, my mind shot straight to all sorts of possible variations on that idea, so you may fully expect to see future recipes from me with, say, fresh figs, pineapple, or any fruit that takes to charring and a delicious glaze. Such a fine idea. Thanks for that, Reubs.

Oh no, wait, sorry… was it the fish heads that had your eyes open wide? Yes, mine too – but for Reuben Riffel, this is nothing new and in fact goes back to his childhood. Which demonstrates that the kid inside him already had an eye and palate for good and interesting food even in his formative years.

It’s a standout book. He brings you more than just recipes. How to organise your store cupboard (lots of condiments and oddities), masses of meat and fowl, and fish of course, but also great vegetables and breads, and the sweet something for later on gets some love as well. I was intrigued by his Blue Cheese Miso Pork Chops, and I happen to know that he loves his prawns, and he doesn’t skimp on those either.

I’m a braai nut, and I’m demanding of any braai book. This one is well worth its salt and the cupboard full of seasonings and condiments that Riffel brings into play.

I like his way with brining chicken before braaiing it, and I take his point that a chicken breast can be a very dry and dull thing if attention hasn’t been paid to getting more out of it. And as for the mielies, well, who doesn’t love a mielie on the coals.

Let’s dive into Reuben’s menu…

Fire Roasted Mielies on the Cob with Lime Parmesan Cream

Fire roasted mielies with lime Parmesan cream. (Photo: Craig Fraser)

Reuben says, of the first dish on his menu: “We all have our favourite mielie recipe. They’re such a good vehicle for adding flavour. My love of mielies started as a kid and we always had them on the braai. For me, it’s the sensation of eating them – they’re sweet, a little messy, and you have to lick your fingers after. With the addition of a lime Parmesan cream, you’ve got acidity, umami, spice and richness added to the char and smokiness… even more reason to love them.”

(Serves 4–8)

8 mielies

2 Tbsp olive oil

Salt and ground black pepper

Shichimi togarashi spice

Handful coriander leaves

Lime wedges

Lime Parmesan Cream:

½ cup mayonnaise

½ cup sour cream

Zest of 2 limes

⅔ cup finely grated Parmesan

Preparing the Lime Parmesan Cream

Whisk all the ingredients in a bowl until well combined. Season.

Preparing the Mielies

Remove the silks from the mielie cobs and tie the leaves/husks back to create a handle for turning them on the coals.

Blanch the mielies in batches in boiling water for 3 minutes. Drain and pat dry with paper towels.

Braaiing the Mielies

Prepare hot coals.

Brush the mielies with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Grill the mielies, turning occasionally, for 10-15 minutes or until
a little charred.

Transfer to a tray and drizzle with lime and Parmesan cream. Sprinkle with togarashi spice and coriander, and serve with lime wedges.

Let’s move on to what Reuben does with a spatchcock fowl…

Riffel and his brined chicken flatty. (Photos: Craig Fraser)

He says: “Peri-peri chicken is addictive. There are thousands of recipes, but I have to say brining the chicken for just the right amount of time makes all the difference. The brine penetrates the flesh and carries the flavour all the way in, seasoning it perfectly and allowing for better retention of those tasty juices.”

Wood Fired Brined Chicken with Peri-Peri

(Serves 4)

1 chicken (about 1.8kg), spatchcocked

Salt and ground black pepper

Brine:

½ cup salt

½ cup sugar

4 litres water

Peri-Peri Sauce:

3-4 long red chillies

5 cloves garlic

2 egg yolks

2 Tbsp lemon juice

1 cup olive oil

Brining the Chicken:

Mix the brine ingredients together in a deep bowl and submerge the chicken in the liquid. Place a plate on top to keep the bird submerged and refrigerate overnight.

Remove the chicken from the liquid and pat dry using paper towels.

Preparing the Peri-Peri Sauce:

Prepare medium-hot coals.

Grill the chillies, turning occasionally, until blistered and charred. Cover them with cling wrap to allow them to sweat and their skins to loosen, then peel and discard the skin.

Blitz the chilli flesh with garlic in a food processor until finely chopped. Add the egg yolks and lemon juice, and process until pale and frothy.

With the motor running, add the oil in a thin stream until it is all incorporated and the sauce is thick and glossy. Season to taste.

Reserve a quarter of the sauce for serving and use the rest for basting.

Spatchcocking the chicken:

Using a small serrated knife or kitchen scissors, cut along each side of the chicken’s spine to remove it. Open out the chicken, breast side/skin side up, and press down to flatten the chicken.

Cooking the chicken:

Prepare medium-hot coals.

Score the chicken through the thickest parts of the thigh and breast using a sharp knife. Brush the chicken all over with peri-peri sauce and season with salt and pepper.

Grill the chicken, skin-side down, until the skin is golden and crisp.

Turn the chicken and continue cooking, brushing occasionally with sauce, until cooked through (30-40 minutes).

Serving:

Cut chicken into pieces and serve with the reserved peri-peri sauce.

Cooking with fish heads? Read on…

Fish heads. Yes, really. And Reuben. (Photos: Craig Fraser)

Reuben says: “To me, cooking and eating fish heads isn’t anything new. My mom made fish head curry with aubergines at least once a month. Yes, it was the whole fish head. We now and then put them into a hot oven with simple seasoning, a drizzle of white wine and olive oil – so delicious. Just eating fish fillets will seem two-dimensional once you’ve tried fish heads. You miss out on enjoying those lekker gelatinous bits, the cheeks etc. It’s a whole different fish-eating experience.”

Fish Heads with Sriracha Butter

(Serves 4)

4 large meaty fish heads (kob or yellowtail works well)

Salt and ground black pepper

Olive oil

Lemon wedges

Sriracha Butter:

¾ cup water

¾ cup butter, cubed

½ cup sriracha sauce

Preparing the Fish Heads:

Butterfly the fish heads by splitting them down the middle and opening them up. Give them a quick rinse in running water and pat dry with paper towel.

Preparing the Sriracha Butter:

Heat the water up slowly in a small saucepan, but don’t let it boil.

Whisk in the butter, bit by bit, allowing it to emulsify with the water to form a silky sauce.

Slowly whisk in the sriracha sauce.

Cooking the Fish Heads:

Prepare hot coals.

Place the fish heads in a clamp-style grid, brush with olive oil and season well with salt and pepper.

Braai them for 1-2 minutes a side, or until the skin begins to blister a little bit, then baste them liberally with the sriracha butter.

Continue braaiing, turning often and basting, until they are cooked through, nicely charred and the skin is crisp.

Serving:

Serve the fish heads simply with lemon wedges.

Now let’s get meaty with Reuben’s tandoori lamb chops…

Tandoori style lamb chops. (Photo: Craig Fraser)

Reuben says: “On my work trips to Dubai over the years, I’ve cooked with some amazing Indian chefs. They really do know how to marinate meat, lamb especially. I know these chops aren’t cooked in a tandoor oven but the results from the double marinating and two-step cooking over the fire are close enough, and the flavour really is beautiful.”

Tandoor Style Lamb Chops

(Serves 4-6)

12 lamb chops

Plain yoghurt, for serving

Tandoor Paste:

2 Tbsp vegetable or olive oil

4cm piece ginger, grated

4 cloves garlic, grated

1 tsp cumin seeds

3 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
(or smoked paprika)

3 tsp garam masala

2 tsp ground coriander

1 Tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp lemon zest

Salt, to taste

Marinating the Lamb:

In a large mixing bowl, combine all the tandoor paste ingredients to create a marinade.

Add the lamb cutlets to the bowl and coat them well with the marinade. Place in the fridge for at least an hour to marinate.

Cooking the Chops:

Prepare medium-to-hot coals.

Braai the chops for 2 minutes on each side.

Remove from the heat and place them back into the marinade. Leave the chops in the bowl for about 2-3 minutes, then toss them to coat in the resting juices in the bowl.

Return the chops to the heat and braai for a further 1-2 minutes on each side (or until cooked to your liking). Turn the chops onto their fat side to crisp up.

Rest the chops for 5-10 minutes.

Serving:

Drizzle the chops with yoghurt, and serve with a fresh summer salad if you like.

And finally, Reuben’s amazing braaied strawberries…

Skewered strawberries with a honey and black pepper glaze. (Photo: Craig Fraser)

He says: “When you’re sitting around a braai to eat and keeping the coals alive while you set the world to rights, you might as well turn to the fire for dessert as well. This is a playful way of taking fresh strawberries to another level. Best when they are in season and bursting with flavour from the sun... the larger the berry, the better.”

BBQ Strawberries with Black Pepper Honey Glaze

(Makes 4-6)

24 large, plump strawberries
with stems attached

4-6 skewers (if wooden, soaked

in water)

Vanilla ice cream, for serving

Black Pepper Honey Glaze:

1 cup honey

1 tsp grated fresh ginger

2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

2-3 Tbsp ground black pepper
(to taste)

Preparing the Glaze:

Melt all the glaze ingredients together in a saucepan over low heat.
Taste and adjust the amount of pepper to your liking.

Preparing the Strawberries:

Thread 3 strawberries per skewer.

Brush the warm syrupy glaze over the strawberries.

Grill the Strawberries:

Prepare very hot coals.

Grill the strawberries, turning the skewers from time to time, giving them another brush of syrup with each turn, for about 4-5 minutes or until they start to caramelise.

Serving:

Serve the skewers with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of any resting juices. DM

All recipes and photos from Reuben Riffel’s Braai (Quivertree Publications) | Creative Director Libby Doyle | Photography Craig Fraser | Styling Anke Roux |

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