Sosaties

Ingredients

Meat

• 1.2 kgboneless lamb shoulder or leg, in 3 cm cubes
• 150 glamb fat, in small cubes, optional but traditional

Marinade

• 2large onions, sliced
• 4garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 tablespoonsmild curry powder or Cape Malay masala
• 1 teaspoonground turmeric
• 1 teaspoonground coriander
• 200 gdried apricots
• 150 mlwhite wine vinegar
• 3 tablespoonsapricot jam
• 2 tablespoonsbrown sugar
• 6lemon leaves or bay leaves
• 2 tablespoonsoil
• 1 teaspoonsalt
• black pepper

To thicken the sauce

• 1 tablespooncornflour, slaked in cold water
• 200 mlwater

Equipment

• metal or soaked wooden skewers

Directions

1. Trim the lamb but leave a reasonable amount of fat on it. Lean lamb dries out badly over hot coals. Cut it into cubes of about three centimetres. Cut the separate lamb fat into smaller cubes. Making the marinade takes about fifteen minutes. Heat the oil in a pan over a medium heat.
2. Fry the sliced onions until they are soft and golden. This takes a good ten minutes and should not be rushed. Stir in the garlic and cook it for one more minute. Add the curry powder, turmeric and coriander to the pan.
3. Fry the spices for a minute until they smell fragrant. Pour in the vinegar and let it bubble hard for a moment. Stir in the apricot jam, the sugar and the salt. Add the dried apricots and the lemon or bay leaves.
4. Simmer it gently for about five minutes. Grind in plenty of black pepper at the end. Take the pan off the heat and let it cool completely. Never pour warm marinade over raw meat. Put the lamb cubes and fat into a deep non-metallic dish. Pour the cooled marinade over them and mix it through. Turn the meat until every piece is properly coated. Cover the dish and refrigerate it overnight.
5. Turn the meat once or twice during that time. Skewering them is done just before cooking. Soak wooden skewers in water for thirty minutes first. Dry skewers burn through over hot coals.
6. Lift the meat out of the marinade and keep the liquid. Thread the lamb onto skewers, alternating with fat cubes. Add a piece of onion from the marinade here and there. Do not pack the skewer too tightly together. Pour the remaining marinade into a small pan.
7. Add the water and bring it to a proper rolling boil. It must boil hard because it has held raw meat. Let it boil for a full five minutes to be safe. Stir in the slaked cornflour and simmer until it thickens. It should coat a spoon like a loose chutney. Keep it warm at the side of the fire. Let the coals burn down until they are covered in grey ash. Lay the skewers on the grid over a medium heat.
8. Turn them every two or three minutes. They need about twelve to fifteen minutes in total. Pile the skewers onto a warm platter. Pour the thickened sauce into a jug alongside. Sosaties can also be cooked under a hot grill indoors. Set the pan close to the element and turn them often.

Technique

• The Cape Malay community were brought to the Cape by the Dutch from the seventeenth century onward, many of them as enslaved people and political exiles from the Indonesian archipelago.
• Sosaties are one of the clearest surviving links between that history and the modern South African braai.

Substitutions

• Pork or beef sosaties are common, and chicken thigh works well with the same marinade but needs less time on the fire.
• Ordinary apricot jam works if dried apricots are unavailable, but the fruit on the skewer is missed.

Variations

• Some families add a splash of tamarind water to the marinade.
• Others use ginger alongside the garlic.
• A hotter version adds fresh chilli, though the classic Cape version is mild and fruity.

History

Cape Malay skewers marinated in curry, apricot and vinegar; the name joins sate, skewered meat, with saus, the marinade.

Frequently asked questions

What is Sosaties?

Sosaties is a main from South Africa: cape Malay lamb skewers marinated in curry and apricot. Cape Malay skewers marinated in curry, apricot and vinegar; the name joins sate, skewered meat, with saus, the marinade.

How long does Sosaties take to make?

Sosaties takes 30 minutes plus overnight marinating of preparation and 20 minutes of cooking. The recipe makes serves 6. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Sosaties?

Yes, within limits. Pork or beef sosaties are common, and chicken thigh works well with the same marinade but needs less time on the fire. Ordinary apricot jam works if dried apricots are unavailable, but the fruit on the skewer is missed.

What is the most important thing to get right in Sosaties?

Simmer it gently for about five minutes. Grind in plenty of black pepper at the end. Take the pan off the heat and let it cool completely. Never pour warm marinade over raw meat. Put the lamb cubes and fat into a deep non-metallic dish. Pour the cooled marinade over them and mix it through. Turn the meat until every piece is properly coated. Cover the dish and refrigerate it overnight.