What South Africans Are Cooking: 3 Easy Meals You Can Have On Repeat

If you’re tired of cooking, and have found yourself in a rut of making the same meal on repeat, know that you are not alone! We know how it feels to need easy meals dinner inspiration!

We asked various South Africans, from Kwazulu-Natal to the Western Cape, what their go-to mid-week meal is. We were looking for ingenious, easy meals that you can effortlessly incorporate in your recipe line up. If you’re in need of some inspiration and want to change it up a bit, have a look at our top 3 picks!

Marmite Spaghetti

Marmite is a true, versatile South African staple, that has been used in various ways – from making a simple sandwich to basting short rib. With only 4 ingredients and a cooking time of under 20 minutes, this is a quick-fire recipe that is still as tasty as you need it to be.

Recipe instructions:

1. Boil pasta until al dente
2. Drain, but save some pasta water
3. Add about a teaspoon of Marmite per 2-person serving (adjust as needed).
4. Add pasta water as needed to make a sauce
5. Serve with grated cheese and black pepper

 Photo credit: Effortless Foodie

Tuna Potato

This 10-minute recipe has everything you need for a well-balanced, mid-week meal: protein, carbs, and vegetables. You can, of course, change up the recipe as much as you want, by adding extra sauces or different toppings, but this is, by far, a quick and easy make.

Recipe instructions:

1. Poke holes in a potato and microwave for 8 minutes, turning over halfway
2. Open a tin of tuna in vegetable oil and drain the oil
3. Chop some onion, tomato and cucumber
4. Cut the cooked potato open and add the tuna filling
5. Top it with some crumbed feta, grated cheddar, chopped parsley and salt and pepper

Photo Credit: Don’tGoBakingMyHeart

 Sticky chicken and chips

Chicken is a fan favourite due to its versatility and its low cost, but it doesn’t need to be colourless and bland. This chicken recipe is an innovative and easy way to change up your game and get flavour that packs a punch!

Recipe instructions:

Chicken:

1. Spice your chicken to taste, and pan fry it for 5 minutes at medium heat
2. Next, turn the heat up to high and pan-fry for another 5 minutes, or until it creates a crispy skin. In this time, prepare your sauce
3. Once a crispy skin has formed, remove the chicken and cool the pan to medium heat again. Once it has cooled, add the sauce and chicken to the pan and let simmer for 10 minutes, occasionally turning the chicken

Sauce:

1. Mix the following:
2. 2 tablespoons Soy sauce
3. 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
4. 125 ml tomato sauce
5. 2 teaspoons brown sugar
6. Add chilli to taste

Chips:

1. Preheat a pot of vegetable oil on medium-high heat
2. Cut the potatoes into thin slices. (About 0.5 cm by 0.5 cm)
3. Add a single potato slice to the oil. If it starts to bubble or float, then the oil is ready. Add the remaining slices and let sit until they float and start to darken (around 20 mins)
4. Remove when ready and add to a bowl to spice
5. Serve while hot

There you have it – 3 recipes that are super simple, fast to make, and have boatloads of flavour. It goes to show that you don’t need a billion different ingredients and chef-level skills to cook up something memorable.

So, get yourself out of your cooking-block and give these meals a try!