Roosterkoek

~ Tandy

Roosterkoek are fluffy bread rolls cooked over the open fire. For them to be truly authentic, this needs to be a wood fire, and not gas. But, as we only have a gas braai at home, I have made my recipe to work on a gas stove. This way, you can enjoy them too! Either which way you cook these, they will have a crunchy exterior and a fluffy interior. If cooked over the open flame, they will also be smoky. Feel free to go wild with the butter options, using any compound butter of your choice. For his recipe in Food Trail South Africa, Warren made coriander and anchovy burnt butter. 

Roosterkoek With Roasted Red Pepper And Chicken Soup
Roosterkoek With Roasted Red Pepper And Chicken Soup
Head straight on to the Recipe For ♥ Roosterkoek ♥
Roosterkoek a.k.a. griddle bread

Hopefully my non-Afrikaans and Dutch readers do not think I made rooster cakes. Roosterkoek are the quintessential South African yeast dough rolls that are baked over the coals of a braai. These should be devoured straight off the grill with loads of butter. For years I have been searching for the perfect recipe to make these at home. Somehow, homemade tastes better than store bought. But, each recipe I have tried has not resulted in perfectly cooked bread. Even following Warren Mendes method resulted in undercooked dough. I have changed the cooking times, and used an indoor griddle pan so that you can make these no matter where you are. And, you don’t need a barbecue to enjoy a traditional South African bread.

Keeping up with traditions

Each year, Dave and I go away with friends to celebrate our wedding anniversaries. A lot of our friends and family members got married in December and each couple has their own traditions. Ours started off with an evening out, just the two of us. And progressed to dinner out with the friends we now go away with. Our dinners out morphed into a night away where we had dinner and breakfast. But now, we prefer the solitude of doing our own thing, eating when and what we want to, and not being forced into breakfast at a specific time. Every supper is braai time, with chicken, fish and meat being cooked over the three evenings. This year I am going to add my own roosterkoek to the feast. And any leftovers can be used for breakfast buns. Do you have a traditional wedding anniversary celebration?

Take a look at this inspiring recipe for ♥ Roosterkoek ♥ from Lavender and Lime #LavenderAndLime Share on X

Click on the links for conversions and notes.
Print Recipe
No ratings yet

Roosterkoek

Cooking times may vary depending on how you cook these
Recipe Category: Bread
Makes enough for: 8 rolls
All Rights Reserved: Adapted from Food Trail South Africa page 82

Ingredients

  • 400 g bread flour, plus extra for dusting
  • 250 mls water
  • 30 mls canola oil
  • 15 mls fructose
  • 10 mls fine salt
  • 7 g instant dried yeast

Method

  • Place the flour, water, oil, fructose, salt and yeast into a stand mixer bowl
  • Using a dough hook, bring the dough together and then knead for 10 minutes
  • Cover and set aside to prove until doubled in size
  • Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and gently knock back
  • Divide until 8 x 85g pieces and roll each piece into a ball, using extra flour if necessary
  • Press into flat discs, 2cm high, cover with a dry towel and set aside for 15 minutes
  • Heat a griddle pan over a medium to low temperature and cook the roosterkoek 12 minutes per side to cook through *

Notes

* you can do this over the open fire, and the timing will depend on how hot the coals are. Do this at the end of your braaiing time when the flames have died down, and have the griddle close to the heat. If using a gas braai be aware of where the flames are and have the heat medium to low. Timing will also depend on how hot the braai is, and whether you close the lid or not.
See the links below for blog posts I published on December 11:

Lavender and Lime Signature

Top of Page

Published by Tandy

I am passionate about using regional, seasonable and sustainable produce when I cook. I live in Gordons Bay with my husband and dogs. We visit new places locally and overseas as often as we can to experience the food of the area. Follow along on our adventures!

24 thoughts on “Roosterkoek”

  1. Oh, ‘roosterkoek’ does sound a lot more interesting than ‘griddle cake’, Tandy 🙂 ! They do look inviting in the picture and Warren Mendes again seems to have passed on good ideas . . . enjoy this and your wedding anniversary special days . . .

    Reply

  8. I’ve made naan and pita bread on the ‘braai’, which was quite similar. It is indeed difficult to know when they are done and (if cooking over fire) to cook the inside without burning the outside. But when you succeed, it does taste great. To me as a Dutchman it is always amusing to read names of dishes in Afrikaans.

    Reply

    1. I can relate! Afrikaans is an amalgamation of Dutch and German mostly. I have to think when talking Dutch to not pronounce words as they would be in Afrikaans 🙂

      Reply

  10. we don’t do much if anything for our anniversary. Sometimes hubby and i get each other some flowers or chocolates delivered. Next year is a big one so you never know… your bread sounds delicious!

    Reply

I would ♥ to hear from you (comments will be visible when I reply)

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.