Two of South Africa’s top female chefs – Amori Burger from Upper Union and Nina du Toit from Salsify at the Roundhouse – have made cooking on Sunday 12 May so much easier with these two recipes. Even better, each recipe has been given with a wine-pairing recommendation from either Johanna Richter from The LivingRoom or Eloise Windebank of Farro at Gabriëlskloof.
Menu 1 | Pan-fried kingklip in a coconut curry sauce served with herb flatbread
Saurwein Riesling Chi
Nina & Johanna
“As the cold weather is slowly creeping in, I thought a light, yet warming coconut curry with panfried fish and fragrant flatbreads would be perfect to celebrate Mother’s Day,” Chef Nina explains.
Fresh kingklip is lightly pan-fried and served atop a generous helping of curry sauce. Made with fresh ginger and lemongrass, turmeric, tamarind and both coconut milk and coconut curry… it’s decadent centre for the simple, warm flatbread on the side.
The Pairing
For the pairing Johanna recommends the Chi Riesling 2023 from Jessica Saurwein.
“It beautifully enhances the spicy notes of the curry with a little bit of sweetness to support the dish with the coconut. The earthiness in the wine with the herbs of the flatbread and acidity of tamarind pairs perfectly,” explains the sommelier.
Menu 2 | Urfi lamb shoulder with spinach & chevin pkhali, and meebos pumpkin
Gabriëlskloof Whole Bunch
Amori & Eloise
“I love a dinner party or, even better, a Sunday lunch – everyone sitting around a table, sharing food, discussing the food and enjoying a great bottle of wine,” says Chef Amori. “I like cooking with flavours that pack a punch –interesting spice combinations, some heat from fresh chilli and balanced out with something acidic.”
Amori’s menu – lamb with two sides – is packed with flavour and requires a bit more time, but it’s definitely worth it. Lamb, slow roasted for four hours, is served with Red Zhoug, tomato Rasam and Labneh.
The first side is a Pkhali, a typical Georgian dish of cooked vegetable pounded with walnuts, garlic, and spices. Amori makes hers with spinach and chevin, along with an ezme (a Turkish “salsa”) with pomegranate molasses. The second side is pumpkin, sweetened with meebos, with a salty peanut podi, sultana and fresh mint.
The Pairing
“I’d pair this dish with Whole Bunch Syrah from Gabriëlskloof,” says Eloise.
The Whole Bunch is a really fresh, crunchy Syrah – a good whack of acidity to cut through the fattiness of the lamb, lots of red fruit and black pepper to complement the spices this dish has in spades and enough tannin to bring it all together with a really luscious mouth feel.
“It’s the kind of red wine that can stand being chilled down a fair bit and still be able to sing, so it’s the perfect wine to stick in an ice bucket and linger over a leisurely lunch with,” she adds.
So, whether you choose from simple and sumptuous, or aromatic and abundant, Mother’s Day 2024 is going to be the best-tasting one yet.
Bon appetit! And cheers…
