Boerewors
This recipe has two parts - the sausage itself & then properly braaiing the boerewors.
Boerewors = Coiled farmers sausage. Boer (farmer) wors (sausage). It’s generally defined as a coiled sausage that must be at least 90% meat and always contains beef. It can also include pork, lamb or a mixture of both. No more than 30% of the meat content may be fat. The remaining 10% consists of spices and other flavor enhancers.
TIP:
If you have a butcher that will custom make this for you, here is the recipe. We find that as long as you agree to order at least 8 lbs, they will happily do it. These freeze very well. You want a natural casing, preferably sheep. Approx. 33/34 mm is the right diameter, but you can go bigger or smaller if you’d like.
This really is an art, as many people tend to badly overcook their sausage. Here, you are making a very high end wors – enjoy it. Overcooking and drying it out defeats the whole purpose of braaiing something special. Industrial sausages can often be less than 15% protein and are just packed with water, filler and cheap fat. These are really nice. They should be treated no differently than a gorgeous steak.
Ingredients:
3 lb beef (pastured if possible)
3 lb pork (pastured if possible)
1 lb pork belly (pastured if possible)
½ cup red vinegar + splash
6 tbsp Worcestershire
1 clove garlic
3 tbsp salt
3 tsp black pepper
3 ½ tbsp coriander (this is an important part of the spice profile)
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tbsp thyme
1 tsp allspice
¾ tsp cloves
You do not want a fine grind on these. Something a bit courser is more authentic.
Directions:
Bring coiled boerewors to room temperature. This will allow for more even cooking.
It’s important your braai is ready and only working with smoldering coals. If there are flames, when any fat drips from the boerewors, you will end up with fat smoke. That does not taste, or smell very nice.
Once the coals are hot and ready, place the boerewors onto the braai. If you’d like, a braai basket is a great tool as well.
As with most items on the braai, let it talk to you. Don’t rush it. Enjoy a glass of Braai Pinotage. Don’t walk away from your braai, but don’t stare at it either. The wors will tell you they are not ready if they stick to the braai when you try to flip them. If they flip easily, they are telling you to go for it.
From here, you are two thirds finished. Watch the boerewors. Touch them with your finger to gauge how soft/hard they are. If they are getting hard, you cooked them too long. Also, remember, when you pull them off and let them set they will still cook. You don’t want it to feel soft at all, just medium firm.
Remove from braai and cover with foil. Wait 5 minutes or so. A hot boerewors is GOLD, so don’t let them get cold.
To us, a proper braai includes quality knives and having a cutting board on hand - perfect for serving these. Slice them into 3 inch lengths and let everyone eat with their fingers!