Eat, drink, and be merry

For self-taught cook Themba Gwejela, better known as Mr Gwej, Christmas is about his family and indulging in food.

“For me, Christmas has always been about variety and abundance… and the idea of being together,” he says.

The Eastern Cape-born foodie has captivated hearts on social media while holding down a 9-5 job. He shows off his creativity in the kitchen by preparing a scrumptious Christmas lunch using White Star. Maize meal is a South African staple, but most have never thought to explore its versatility beyond the traditional ways of preparing it — especially to get you through the rest of January, when reducing food waste and saving money are paramount.

Chips made with White Star Super Maize Meal and sweet potatoes, served with fried hake and tartare sauce.

Ingredients

5 cups of water

A pinch of salt

2 cups of White Star Super Maize Meal Quick

3 medium-sized sweet potatoes, peeled, boiled, and mashed

Sunflower oil for frying

Method

Pre-heat the oven to 160ºC.

Bring 3 cups of water to boil in a pot with the salt.

Mix the remaining water with the White Star Quick to form a paste. Gradually add this paste to the boiling water while stirring with a whisk.

Once mixed, add the sweet-potato mash and salt, and continue mixing until fully combined.

Transfer the mixture to a rectangular oven tray, cover with foil, and bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Once baked, remove from the oven, let the mixture cool down until cold, and set in the fridge overnight.

Once set, cut the pap into thick chips and fry in hot oil using a deep fryer or deep-frying pan/pot. They should be golden brown, crunchy on the outside, and soft on the inside. Enjoy with good old fried fish and some tartar sauce.

Deep-Fried Cheesy Pap Rolls with Lamb Ragu

Ingredients for pap rolls

4 cups of water

250ml fresh cream

100g salted butter

2 cups of White Star Super Maize Meal Quick

Pinch of salt

2 cups of grated cheese

3 eggs

2 cups of breadcrumbs

Sunflower oil for frying

Ingredients for lamb ragu

3 medium-sized lamb shanks

2 garlic cloves, sliced

4 dried curry leaves

1 teaspoon dried chilli

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

2 large onions, chopped

1 teaspoon Bovril

1 cup chicken stock

1 can chopped tomatoes

3 tablespoons of olive oil

3 teaspoons tomato paste

Salt and pepper for seasoning

Fresh coriander, chopped

Method for pap rolls

Bring 2 cups of water to boil in a pot. While it’s boiling, add the butter and cream, and mix until the butter is dissolved.

Mix the remaining water with White Star Quick to form a paste. Gradually add this paste to the mixture above while stirring with a whisk. Cook on medium heat for 4-5 minutes.

Wait for the pap to cool down but not get cold. Once cooled down, roll it into balls and flatten like a pizza base.

Sprinkle grated cheese on the flattened pap and carefully roll back up. You will make a few of these using all the pap.

In a separate mixing bowl, whisk the eggs lightly to make an egg wash. Dip the pap rolls in the egg wash and coat with breadcrumbs.

Store the coated pap rolls in the fridge overnight. Fry these in hot sunflower oil using a deep fryer, then cut them into sushi-like slices.

Method for lamb ragu

Place lamb shanks in a pressure cooker and add garlic, curry leaves, chili, turmeric, paprika, one chopped onion, dried chillies, Bovril, chicken stock, and canned tomatoes. Set the timer to 60 minutes and cook on the highest setting.

Once the meat is cooked, it should be falling off the bone and be ready to shred using a fork.

In saucepan, fry the second onion in olive oil until golden brown, add the shredded meat and the tomato paste, mix well, and add some of the sauce from the pressure cooker to ensure your meat is not dry. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and simmer for about five minutes on medium heat.

Add chopped coriander and switch the stove off. Enjoy the lamb ragu with fried pap slices.

Sweet chocolate brownies made with White Star Chocolate Flavoured Instant Porridge.

Ingredients

3 eggs

1 cup sunflower oil

1 cup castor sugar

2 teaspoons of vanilla essence

1 cup of cake flour

1 cup of White Star Instant Maize Porridge, chocolate flavour

2 teaspoons of baking powder

1 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda

A pinch of salt

3 teaspoons of cocoa powder

Chopped pecan nuts (optional)

Method

Preheat oven to 180ºC.

In a mixing bowl, beat eggs, sunflower oil, and castor sugar until creamy, add vanilla essence and mix.

Add flour, porridge, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, salt, and cocoa powder, and mix with a whisk.

Add chopped pecan nuts (if using) and fold them in.

Grease a rectangular baking tray and pour in the baking mix, using a spatula press to press it down and spread it across the tray. Bake for 25 minutes at 180ºC.

These are great on their own or with vanilla ice cream. For the perfect South African Christmas dessert, use the chocolate brownie as a base for your trifle.